Kotoko Volant
by displacedtexan
Summary: One averted accident causes Kotoko to chart a new course for her life without her beloved Irie-kun. Mishaps, misunderstandings, and miscommunication ensue because, well, it IS Kotoko. Manga-based. FOLLOWUP STORY: Multiplicity.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Itazura na Kiss in any way, shape or form. Because if I did, this Texas girl would have smacked a 2x4 alongside Naoki's head a few times.

Chapter 1

"What am I doing here?" Aihara Kotoko asked herself. All afternoon she and Sudo-sempai had been trailing Irie-kun and Matsumoto-san on their date. The movie, the restaurant, the shopping trip—all of that spying effort—just to have thrown in their faces, _repeatedly_ , how well-suited the pair was.

"I'm going home," Kotoko quietly announced to Sudo.

Of course, he did not take her statement rationally or calmly. If she had not known better, she would have sworn that a tennis racquet was in his hand. "What?! Why now?!"

"I can't stand to see them together anymore," she stated, eyes to the ground, blinking to keep tears from falling.

"But that's why we're here—to put a stop to it," Sudo argued.

"If they're truly in love, then there's nothing we can do about it … I just realized that."

"So, are you saying that you accept them as a couple?!" Sudo grilled her, his mustache quivering in frustration.

The tears finally succumbed to gravity. "I … I just … I just don't want to feel more pathetic than I already do!" Kotoko declared, sniffing. "Sorry, sempai, but I'm dropping out!"

Hand to her eye, Kotoko reversed direction and began walking away. With unusual adroitness for someone normally clumsy, she managed to swerve around a large man in a garish shirt. Sudo-sempai produced a growl of protest which was followed by a loud thud and the sound of splashing liquid. Unwilling to further embarrass herself by showing a crying face on a public street, Kotoko did not turn around and continued toward the train station.

Recognizing a familiar voice in an angry discussion rapidly increasing in volume, Irie Naoki stopped and turned.

"What is it, Irie-kun?" asked Matsumoto Yuko, eyes on the composed face of the man beside her.

He chuckled softly. "It's just that idiot Sudo," he replied. "Unbelievable."

"What is he doing here?" she exclaimed, standing on her toes to see over the crowd. "Do you think he followed us?"

"Didn't you notice earlier?" Naoki asked absently, his eyes shifting from the now-physical altercation to observers nearby. His brows moved together slightly, giving him a worried look when he failed to find whom he sought.

Matsumoto tightened her grip on his arm. "Don't tell me that you plan to help that fool?"

"Not at all," he replied smoothly. "Let's go on, shall we?"

With a satisfied smile on her face, Matsumoto led him on towards the next shop. She never noticed that he gave one last glance over his shoulder before proceeding.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

After scrubbing her eyes and cheeks thoroughly, Kotoko stared fixedly at the corner opposite her seat on the train. "No, I will not cry now. No more in public!" Setting her mouth in a firm line, she used her observations from earlier in the day to consider her situation.

"Over three years wasted on him! If only I hadn't been so stubborn. Everyone tried to tell me that Irie-kun was out of my reach, but would I listen? No! And what do I have to show for it? One kiss that came out of nowhere, failing grades because I am taking advanced classes to be close to him, and membership in a sports club with a sadistic leader!" She paused and stretched her shoulders, recalling the hours of tormenting exercises that had been forced on her. "And no boyfriend!" she exclaimed in a loud voice, causing several passengers to glance her way warily.

Frowning, she leaned forward and rested her elbow on her knee and chin on elbow. "I told Irie-kun that the reason I wanted to go to college was to find out what I wanted to do. And what have I found out so far?" She chuckled softly. "Well, I've discovered that I'm not going to be an English translator and will NEVER play professional tennis. So I've eliminated two future careers. Now I need to find something that I CAN do instead."

Her eyes became unfocused as she stared into space, contemplating her possibilities. Gradually, her eyebrows crunched together and her frown increased. This time two passengers across from her nervously changed seats.

"I've got it!" She sat up straight and pounded the seats on either side of her with her fists. "Boyfriend mora…moratur…morutori…! No men! Men just get in the way. Didn't I come to college for me? That's what I'm going to do. I will concentrate on my own life and not my fantasy future." Her lower lip trembled. "Oh, but Irie-kun …"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Sipping from the can of coffee that she had purchased from a vending machine near the station, Kotoko began the walk home to the Irie's house.

"Now, the problem is that Otosan and I are still living with the Iries and I must see Irie-kun every day. That situation will make it harder to get over him," she muttered to herself. "It will be too much trouble if Otosan and I try to move out again. But living there, won't that mean that Obasama will continue to push us together? And I think that it will be more difficult than I can imagine to convince her to stop," she sighed.

Finally stopping in front of the house, she took a deep breath. "One step at a time. One day at a time. I will persevere," she whispered softly.

Opening the door, she called out cheerily, "I'm home!" and proceeded to remove her shoes.

On the couch, Yuuki looked up from a book and growled, "Who cares, baka?"

"Lovely to see you too, Yuuki-kun!" she chimed, ruffling his hair as she walked to the kitchen to rinse the coffee can.

Yuuki laid his book on the table and followed her into the kitchen, smoothing his hair flat. "So where did you go today, Ko-To-Ko? Onii-chan's out on a date. Did you go spy-y-y on him?"

Her back to him as she deposited the can in the recycler, Kotoko stiffened before she turned and lifted her chin. "What makes you think I'd waste my time doing that? For your information, I saw a delightful movie and had a meal with a friend. If Irie-kun and his date _happened_ to be doing the same thing, we _might_ have passed nearby."

"Yeah, I was right," Yuuki chuckled evilly as her airy wave of innocence almost knocked over a pot of herbs. "When will you realize that Onii-chan doesn't like you?"

Kotoko folded the dish towel and replaced it, taking great care to center it on the hanger. "Right now, Yuuki-kun," she replied quietly with her head lowered. "Irie-kun will not have to run from me anymore. It's over."

As she silently exited the kitchen and headed for the stairs, Yuuki stared after her, mouth agape. "Oh man, is the baka running a fever?" he moaned to himself.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Dinner began as a fairly quiet affair, as Naoki still had not returned from his date and Kotoko's father was at his restaurant. Mrs. Irie mentioned her disappointment in her son's tardiness. "What does that son of mine think he is doing, going out with another woman when the perfect wife for him is right here under the same roof?

"No—" Kotoko started.

Mrs. Irie continued as if she had not been interrupted, gathering steam as she went. "We must redouble our efforts to foil that Jezebel's plans!"

Seeing Yuuki smother a snicker in his napkin, Kotoko again attempted to break in. "Ah, Matsumoto-san is not exactly a Jez—"

"Nonsense! She is refusing to stay in her place. We shall face her head-on and defeat her pitiful attempts to steal Onii-chan from your side! And I'm going to give that fickle son of mine a piece of my mind when he returns this evening!"

"Please, Obasama," Kotoko pleaded softly, "both of us must stop this dreaming. It will not come true." She closed her eyes momentarily and prayed for strength. "Irie-kun should be able to fall in love with whoever he wishes." She took a small bite of fish and continued after swallowing. "I have decided that I am not going to pursue Irie-kun any longer. I am going to fill my life with … college experiences and find satisfaction in that area."

"But Kotoko-chan!" Mrs. Irie exclaimed. "What about our plans? The remodeling? The new rooms upstairs?"

"No." Kotoko was firm. "Irie-kun wants none of that. He has had plenty of time to get to know me better and … nothing has happened. As for me, I am charting a new course for my life. I hope you will support me."

Mrs. Irie's eyes filled with tears. "Oh, Kotoko-chan! But I am sure that—" Kotoko shook her head at her, her own eyes bright. Hands to her mouth, Mrs. Irie choked out, "Kotoko-chan! I am so sorry! I never intended to cause you pain. Forgive me for wanting you for my daughter so much that I—" She broke off and wiped her eyes with her napkin.

"No, Obasama," Kotoko reassured her, reaching to cover her hands with her own. "I am honored that you wanted me to marry your son. And I will always think of you as my mother." When Mrs. Irie's eyes gushed forth fresh tears at those words, Kotoko rose and embraced her. "Now, let's dry your face and give a toast to my new life."

Kotoko extended her glass towards the center of the table, the others clinking theirs with hers. Mrs. Irie produced a wavering smile, Mr. Irie gave a nervous laugh, and Yuuki narrowed his eyes unbelievingly at her.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Later in her room, Kotoko sat at the desk, her hair, damp from the bath, chilling her back. "'Avoidance Plan'," she muttered as she wrote the words at the top of the paper. "'Number 1: Leave early and arrive at campus before him.' That should take care of the first few hours of the day. Where to go so early, though?" She absently tapped her pencil to her chin before inspiration struck. "Ah, library! Irie-kun always goes straight to the Science Building. I should be safe there.

"Now, 'Number 2: Sit in the back of the classroom in English Comprehension.' I won't join him and Matsumoto-san in the row below. I'll just have to try and not look their direction. Oh, and I hope Kin-chan will stop coming to class. I need to concentrate even harder without Irie-kun and Matsumoto-san nearby." She grinned suddenly. "Ah, maybe sitting so far back that mean professor won't call on me so often!

"'Number 3: Eat bento lunch instead of cafeteria.' That will keep me out of both Irie-kun and Kin-chan's sight. All Kin-chan will talk about is how bad Irie-kun is and how great he himself is. Plus, he smothers me with attention. Kin-chan won't understand that just because I'm not dating Irie-kun doesn't mean that I want to date _him_."

Kotoko glanced sadly at the tennis racquet leaning in the corner of her room. "Yes, 'Number 4: Take a leave of absence from the Tennis Club.' I never know when Irie-kun might decide to show up and I don't want to have Matsumoto-san gloating over me just yet. Anyway, the only reason they'll miss me is that they'll have to find someone else to pick up all the balls.

"But I've got to find something else to fill my time after school." She rested her chin on her fist, fingers beating a rapid tattoo on the desktop. "It's too bad that I didn't join any other clubs. Then I could just start to be more active…" Kotoko's eyes widened as a wild thought crossed her mind. She shook her head vigorously. "No! impossible!" She stilled, her mind slowly contemplating. "But it would be a safe place to go; no one would think to look for me there. Plus, some of them wear glasses, so maybe that means they're smart and could help me in my classes." She suddenly slapped her hand to the desk. "And I can help them with their project! That's it! I'll do it!"

She heard footsteps in the hall and then the opening and closing of the door to Yuuki and Irie-kun's room. She shuffled her list under the stack of paper and began to write quickly on the top sheet. Through the walls, she could hear Yuuki's high-pitched voice speaking rapidly, punctuated every so often by Naoki's deeper rumble. As she folded her now-completed note, she heard the other bedroom door open and close again, footsteps in the hall, then a knock on her door.

"Come in!" she called in a deliberately cheerful voice.

Naoki opened the door and leaned against the door jamb. "So, Kotoko, how are you feeling? Yuuki is worried about you," he stated with his usual slight smirk.

"I am quite all right, Irie-kun," she replied calmly. "But I am glad that you asked, as I wonder if you could do me a favor."

Naoki's smirk became more pronounced. "I'm sure you do. What is it this time? Not that it means that I _will_ do it."

"Are you planning to go to Tennis Club tomorrow?" she asked, ignoring his last comment. "The only reason I ask is that you could deliver this note to Sudo-sempai if you are."

"What?" Naoki suddenly stood upright, the smirk wiped completely off his face.

"That would save me from having to track him down, you know." She widened her eyes innocently.

"Didn't you spend the day with him already? Why don't you just call your _boyfriend_ if you have something more to say to him?"

Kotoko pursed her lips and looked at him sternly. "Yes, we spent some time together today, but I don't have his phone number and he is definitely not my boyfriend. His heart is taken by someone else." She glared at him pointedly before continuing in a lofty tone. "I find my college activities will not allow me to attend Tennis Club for a short while and I wanted to be courteous enough to let him know."

"What other activities can you possibly be talking about? Unless it is studying for your classes, which you certainly should be doing more of."

"I don't really see how that is any of your business. Besides," she laughed briefly, "admit it, I'm not much of a loss to the Tennis Club. So, will you deliver this or not?" she asked, thrusting the folded paper at him.

Naoki walked to her slowly and took it from her hand. "Damned if I know what you're up to, but I'll get this to Sudo." He paused and turned back to her as he reached the door. "Are you sure you're all right?"

She pasted a wide smile on her face. "Absolutely, Irie-kun. Thank you so much." She swiveled her chair back around, facing her desk.

Naoki stared at her back for several seconds then narrowed his eyes on the messy stack of papers on her desk. After a moment, he shrugged his shoulders and left the room, closing the door behind him.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and kind words. As several of you requested, I will try to write longer chapters. This chapter is still shorter than some may like, but the scene right after it includes characters never fleshed out in the manga, so I'm still working on injecting some personality into them.

 **Chapter 6**

The next morning Kotoko was successful in her early departure; however, she did not leave unnoticed. Mrs. Irie caught her in the entryway and pressed several slices of bread on her to eat while she walked.

"Well," she mused later, wiping her mouth with her sleeve, "I suppose it would not be good to have my stomach growling all morning. I'll need to work on this part of my plan so I can actually eat first. Now, on to the library!" she declared, fist in the air as she lengthened her stride.

Two hours later, racing to her first class, she decided that another revision needed to be made. "That library is too quiet in the morning! How embarrassing to fall asleep and only awaken because the library cart has a squeaky wheel!"

She opened the door to the Japanese Literature classroom as quietly as she could, bowing apologies as she made her way to her seat near Satomi and Jinko. Luckily, the professor only scowled menacingly during her progress.

"Hey, Kotoko!" Jinko whispered at a level that she _thought_ was low. "What made you so late?"

Satomi leaned over to add a comment. "Yeah, we thought you were going to tell us all the details of Irie-kun's date."

Kotoko smiled uneasily at the two of them. "Ah, something came up."

The professor had apparently reached the end of his patience. "Ladies, would you care to take your conversation outside the classroom?"

"No, sensei. We're sorry!" the three friends chorused.

"I'll tell you everything later," Kotoko hissed as she opened her notebook.

* * *

"What!?"

"No way!" Both Jinko and Satomi were astonished at Kotoko's declaration that she was not only going to give up on Naoki but was not going to try to find a different boyfriend.

"You know you can always join one of our clubs," Satomi stated, arm squeezing Kotoko's thin shoulders in a comforting manner. "There are plenty of men there."

"And they're not mean, like certain people!" Jinko chimed in.

"No, no!" Kotoko protested, hands waving in denial. "I am going to try this way for awhile. Maybe after a time I might be interested."

Jinko jumped to her feet and took a belligerent stance. "That Irie Naoki has a lot to answer for. I'd like to meet him in a dark alley…"

"Jinko!" Satomi cried. "That is not what Kotoko needs to hear! We must … support our friend's decision, no matter how stupid we think it is!" She then laughed and gave Kotoko a quick hug. "You know that we love you, right? Just let us know if we can help in any way."

"Oh, you guys!" Kotoko wiped her eyes. "You are the best friends!"

* * *

With exaggerated stealthy moves, Kotoko peered through the door of the English Comprehension classroom.

"Success!" Neither Irie-kun nor Matsumoto-san was there. Kotoko scurried to the farthest left seat on the top row. Quickly she opened her bag and covered her hair with a garish headscarf, perching oversized sunglasses on her nose. She then hunched herself over to reduce the size of her already short frame.

The lecture hall gradually filled. Soon Naoki arrived and seated himself in the usual spot, setting out his notebook and pencils in his usual precise manner. A minute later Matsumoto arrived and sat down next to him with a smile.

"Good morning, Irie-kun," she greeted. "Is Aihara-san running late today?"

"I don't know," he replied. "I never saw her this morning. Mother complained that she left early."

Matsumoto's smile deepened. "Maybe she was meeting a _friend_ ," she suggested, emphasizing the last word by showing her teeth.

Naoki looked at her with disinterest. "Who knows? Whatever is going on, Aihara will let us know eventually. She is genetically unable to keep a secret. I just hope that her absence means that we will be spared Ikezawa's pres…"

"Good morning, Mr. Genius and Miss Snooty Lady!" Kinnosuke's grinning countenance popped between their heads, causing Naoki to close his eyes as if in pain. "Where is my Kotoko today?"

"We haven't seen her, Mr. Insect," Matsumoto sniffed. "Why don't you leave and let the actual students learn something today?"

"I know! You and Mr. Brainiac have bullied Kotoko and scared her away!" He stood up, looked all around and shouted, "Kotoko! Where are you? Kin-chan is here to protect you! Ko-to-ko!"

With a look of displeasure on his face, Naoki turned to face him. "Do you mind taking your baboon mating call elsewhere? Aihara is not here." He paused momentarily, eyes focusing on something behind Kinnosuke's left shoulder. "Knowing her appetite, you can be sure to see her in the cafeteria if she is at school today. Now leave before the professor throws you out again for causing a disruption."

"You—you—" Kinnosuke sputtered, pointing at Naoki. Just then the door below them near the lectern opened and the professor walked in. "Don't think you've heard the last of me!" was his parting shot as he bounded up the stairs two at a time.

"As if I could be so lucky," Naoki muttered under his breath.

Kotoko's back ached from huddling in the corner, but she was relieved that the strategy had apparently shielded her from Nakagawa-sensei's acerbic comments. Waiting for the room to empty after the professor's departure, she bent over to open her bag.

"Do I really want to know why you are cosplaying as my mother?"

"Ack!" Kotoko jumped at the voice, her arms flying in the air. "Irie-kun!" she gasped, one hand on her heart and the other steadying the sunglasses on the tip of her nose. "You startled me. And, how did you know it was me?"

"Honestly, couldn't you think of a more original disguise?" he asked. "This is what Mom always wears while prowling around in her mistaken belief that she won't be recognized. You really are two of a kind." Naoki turned to exit the row of seats. "Well, at least your apparent absence gave me an hour free of Ikezawa. He was easily deceived by this flimsy charade."

Kotoko grumbled as she shoved the scarf and glasses back in the bag. "Well, _you_ see right through me so I know I can't fool you. And Kin-chan was the person the disguise was for!"

Naoki paused, turning his head to look back at her. "You were trying to hide from Ikezawa? That's a first."

"You don't know everything, Irie-kun!" Kotoko brushed past him and headed down the hall, her speed increasing as she went.

He stared after her. "Yes, I'm quite aware of that," he mused to himself.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

That afternoon after classes Kotoko made her halting and furtive way to the building complex with the club rooms. She giggled to herself as she did so. "This is just how I followed Irie-kun to the tennis club that first day. Except this time I'm trying to keep him and any other tennis player from seeing me!" Finally in front of the target door, she took a deep breath then flung opened the door, arms spread wide in full announcement mode. "I'm ba-a-ack!"

Dead silence greeted her for all of ten seconds, as five students in varying stages of unkemptness stared at her. Then, as if rehearsed, they all shouted, "Kotorin!" and scrambled to their feet, the nearest ones rushing towards her.

"Kotorin! You're here!"

"Kotorin! It's been so long since we've seen you!"

"Kotorin! Are you here to model for us?"

"Kotorin! I need some new poses. Who has the camera?"

"Kotorin! Would you try on this costume?"

"Aiii!" Kotoko shouted. "Not all of you at once! And no, I'm not going wear that swimsuit—how dare you call it a costume!"

Gradually the tumult died down, with a few mutters from the tall skinny member as he replaced the patterned bikini in a filing cabinet drawer, stroking it as he gave it one last longing look.

"Kotorin, why are you here?" asked the bespeckled student who appeared to be the leader.

Kotoko clasped her hands in front of her waist and plastered a large smile on her face. "Well, since I'm a member…and haven't really done anything…I thought I'd come and…see what I can do to help out."

The men looked at each other and then back at her. "Help out? What skills do you have?"

"Skills?" Kotoko's eyebrows rose. "What do you mean?"

"Well, can you draw manga or anime characters?" asked one.

"Ah, no."

"Do you write fanfiction?"

"I'm not... _that_ good...in writing classes."

"Can you edit movies on the computer?"

"I've...never used a program like that." By now Kotoko's hands were wringing together and her smile had disappeared.

One of the students gestured to the others and they formed a loose huddle. Kotoko leaned forward to hear what they were saying. She might have saved herself the trouble as they didn't bother to lower their voices by many degrees.

"But she's a girl…Yes, she's the only girl member…Do you think she would…I don't know, I heard that she liked…She might…She could choose…Who's going to ask her?" Eyes met and then each held out a fist and pounded the air. "Rock, paper, scissors, lizard, Spock!"

As Kotoko counted on her fingers and queried to the ceiling, "Lizard? Spock?" the men continued. "Take-kun, Yoshida-kun, you're out. Again!" This continued until the young man with long bangs covering one eye was pushed forward.

"Kotorin," he began.

"Kotoko," she corrected with a smile.

"Koto—ko. We were wondering if you would be willing…" He turned to look at the others, who waved their hand at him in a "Go on!" motion. "Wouldyoubeourgirlfriend?" he said all in a rush.

"Eh? What?!" she cringed back in shocked response. "Girlfriend…all of you?" She pointed to them one at a time.

"No!" "No!" "Just pick one!" "Pick me!" they clamored together.

"But…you don't even know me. And I don't know you. And…I'm really swearing off men and dating for awhile," she trailed off.

The slightly heavyset leader came forward and bowed. "Pardon us. I am Aoki Takeshi, the president." Pointing to the one who had spoken to her before, he said, "This is Tanaka Hikaru. And they are Nishimura Kenji, Yoshida Toru, and Kato Toshiyuki. We asked because…we know you best of any of the girls on campus."

"Wait a minute," Kotoko said to him. Her forehead furrowed as she tried to remember the last time she had met them.

"Ah!" she shouted suddenly, making all of them jump a little as she aimed her index finger at them. "At tennis camp! You said that I was the only female member of the club, didn't you?" They nodded in unison.

"So you…really don't know many girls, is that it?" They nodded again. "If you knew other girls, it wouldn't have to be me, would it?"

The students looked at each other. "I guess not," said Tanaka, speaking for them all.

"But we do like you!" one of them added quickly.

"Okay, then! I will find you girlfriends!" Kotoko vowed, clenching her fist in determination.

"You will!?" they all cried, leaning towards her.

"Urg!" She bent back as the hope from their eyes speared her. "Well, at least some possibilities. And, ah, we might have to work on…things before that."

"What kind of things?" asked the tall skinny member.

"Um, Taro-san, was it?" asked Kotoko.

"Kato," he replied.

"Sorry, Kato-san. Well, you guys may be super-smart and know how to draw and edit movies and write fonfiction-"

"Fanfiction," Kato muttered (not that Kotoko heeded the interruption).

"-and there's nothing _that_ much wrong with your looks, but when you put it all together, the whole package just isn't that...attractive. To be honest, you can be a little scary at first glance. But don't worry!" She waved her hands at their disappointed expressions. "Now you have me, and I can fix all that! I may not know how to convo- conjo- well, whatever it is with English verbs or how to solve an equation or remember Norton's three laws of motion-"

"Newton."

"-but I know all about style and fashion, and that is what you are definitely lacking." She looked them all over. "Makeovers! We just have to make the ladies like what they see first. Hmm, hold on, ah! Hairstyle changes, a little exercise routine, _definitely_ new clothes...how does that sound to you?"

Some looked hesitant while others seemed to be considering the matter. "Oops," thought Kotoko, "I'd better give them a push."

"Remember," she purred in what she hoped was an enticing voice, "you want to attract gir-r-r-rls."

Several of them brightened at that reminder. "Okay!"

Kotoko rubbed her hands together. "Now, who's in?"

After a moment, three of them shuffled forward and stood before her.

"Okay!" she squared her shoulders. "Um, Tako-san…"

"Kato.""

"Kato-san, and… "

"Tanaka." "And Aoki," offered the others, unwilling to hear how she would mangle their names.

"All right," she said, hand to her chin. "First step…first step…Okay! Tomorrow at this time, meet here and dress as if you were going on a date with a girl. That way I can see what I'm working with."

She turned to the two that had not volunteered. "So you two don't want to find a girlfriend?"

They looked at each other but did not reply.

"You want to find a— _boy_ friend?"

"N-no!" one of them sputtered. "We just want to see…how well this works first."

"Smart move," Kotoko's smile faded and her voice trailed off. "I don't know how I'm going to handle three men if I couldn't even handle one Irie-kun!" Then she shook her head at looked at them all. "Now, have any of you taken Nakagawa-sensei's English Comprehension class?"


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The next morning Kotoko decided to leave at her regular time and not risk another unexpected nap in the library. Since looking at Naoki still made her chest twinge, at breakfast she tried to aim her eyes at Yuuki when she had to raise her head. She found even that tactic unnerving, for Yuuki stared at her intently during the entire meal. She struggled to behave normally and not notice that Mrs. Irie only picked at her food and spent a lot of time sighing whenever she looked at Kotoko. The words "wedding" and "grandchildren" _might_ have slipped from her lips occasionally.

As soon as she finished eating, Kotoko excused herself, gathered her bag and shoes and exited the door. While walking down the street, she heard Naoki's steps closing in on her. She took a deep breath and tried to compose her heart.

To her surprise, instead of passing her, Naoki slowed once he reached her side and continued to walk next to her. Not willing to break the silence but stealing the occasional glance, she continued to walk without speaking the remainder of the trip.

"Strange," she mused to herself when they finally parted at the campus. "He's not being mean to me like he usually does. Why is he starting to act that way _now_?"

* * *

The three men trembled, sweat glistening on their brows as Kotoko slowly circled them for the fourth time. Those not participating in the "date dress" exercise huddled over their computers, periodically sneaking looks at the progress.

She finally stopped in front of them, bowed her head, and heaved a great sigh. "This is going to be a lot of work," she muttered. Straightening herself with a shake, she spoke to the one on the left, squinting at the bright pink name label on his chest. "Tanaka-san, no turtlenecks, especially under plaid flannel shirts. Besides being ugly, that makes too many layers for this season of weather. And if you are going to bundle up on top, why are you wearing rubber beach sandals on your feet?"

A muffled snort was heard from Yoshida, who quickly ducked his head when Kotoko shot him a look.

She moved on. "Aoki-san, do you think you are John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever?" She gestured to the gold chain visible in the opening of his satin half unbuttoned shirt. "It's a classic movie but the style is _so_ last century. Plus, the fabric is snagged in several places and there are black scuff marks on your white patent leather shoes."

"And Kato-san, while a polo shirt and khaki trousers are entirely aphro...appro...good, the size is all wrong. I can see leg between the bottom of the hem and the top of your shoes!" Kotoko paused, staring at his feet. "Although I do like your high-top Converses. I think we can keep those…"

Kato's relieved sigh turned into a painful yelp when Kotoko poked his midsection with two fingers.

"Wh…what?!" he gasped, then watched as she repeated the procedure on his companions.

All eyes were on her as she pulled out a turquoise notebook and a pencil festooned with a large glittery pompom. She glanced from them to her paper as she wrote quickly.

"Aoki-san!" she called suddenly. "How many bowls of rice do you eat each day?"

"Ah, um, about seven?"

"You are now limited to four. Tanaka-san?"

"About the same."

"You can have five. Kato-san?"

"Three." He grinned in confidence.

"You must now eat six." She finished one page in the notebook then flipped it over, continuing to bark out orders. "Now, all three of you need to meet me seven o'clock tomorrow morning at the field. Tanaka-san and Aoki-san, wear clothes to exercise in. Kato-san, you and I will watch them as you tutor me in English. We will do this for one hour every other day. Once I see progress here, we will move into the next phase."

The three looked at each other, then Kato asked, "And what will that be?"

With a gleam in her eye, Kotoko looked up and clenched her fist. "Haircuts, clothes and conversation training! By the time the festival comes around, you will be so attractive that women will be clamoring to be in our club!" She dug in her bag and took out her cell phone. "Now let me take 'before' pictures of each of you for reference…"

Once that task was complete, she surprised them by linking arms with Tanaka and Aoki. "Hey! You were making a movie of me for the festival. Can I see what you have so far?"

Immediately the students began talking and led her toward the computer with the largest screen.

"We have most of the animation done," said Aoki. "Toru, show her the fight scene with Matsumotorre!"

"Matsu…?" Kotoko exclaimed.

"See, here is your decisive blow to her!" exclaimed Kato.

"My weapon…is a tennis racquet?" queried Kotoko. "Guys, you do know that I'm not that good at tennis, don't you?"

"But you are Kotorin of the Anime Club!" exclaimed Aoki. "You can be anything you want! Live by our club's quote: 'This isn't reality. This is fantasy!'"

Kotoko grinned. "I like that. Is it from Star Wars?"

"Uh, no, Star Trek. Uhura said it in Star Trek III: The Search for…"

"Oh, well, same thing. Can you show me that scene again?" She leaned forward. "Hey! What is my character wearing?!"

In an instant Kato pushed in front of the sputtering Aoki, holding the swimsuit in front of her again. "See how it suits the anime action? Don't you think you could…"

"Put it away!"


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Kotoko's supply of sticky notes dwindled as she marked pages in the men's fashion magazines she had purchased on her way home. Thanks to Satomi's reply to her frantic text, she knew which ones to select at the bookstore. Utilizing another idea from Satomi, she had also downloaded a virtual fashion app and was busy customizing the characters with photos and body types of her "Anime Men", as she had dubbed them. She jumped when someone knocked on her door.

"Yes?" she called out, juggling her phone which had leaped out of her hands at the sudden sound.

Naoki stuck his head in, towel around his neck. "It's your turn in the bath," he informed her.

"Thank you!" she stood up and began collecting her pajamas. She stopped abruptly and stared at him, still standing in the doorway, eyes on her desk. "Do you need something, Irie-kun?" she asked.

He shook his head as if a daydream had just been interrupted. "Sorry, I guess my mind wandered for a moment. Do you have everything?"

Kotoko looked at him as if he had grown two heads. "Yes. I'm going now," she said as she passed by him to the hall.

"Then I'll close the door for you," he replied.

"Thank you," she called back, not noticing that her bedroom door's latch did not click into place.

* * *

"Onii-chan!" hissed Yuuki. "What are you doing?" He watched his brother meticulously comb through the stack of items on Kotoko's desk.

"Looking for clues to her recent behavior," his brother responded absently. "Ah!" he exclaimed as he pulled out a handwritten sheet from the bottom of the pile.

"Are you crazy?" Yuuki whispered. "What if she catches you? Let's get out of here!"

"Kotoko spends between nineteen to twenty three minutes in the bath nightly," Naoki replied. "I still have at least nine more minutes."

"That's extremely precise, Onii-chan," his brother said with his eyes widening. "Have you actually timed her?"

Naoki's face flushed slightly. "There's not much else to do at night. Besides, it counts as a concentration exercise, right?"

"I suppose so," Yuuki said slowly. He moved to the desk and picked up one of the magazines, flipping through the pages. "Kotoko-baka always dresses so girly-girly. Why has she bookmarked these magazines? And why does she even have them?"

"That, little brother, is mystery number three. Mystery number two is, why is she ignoring the bridal magazines that Mother has been sneaking into her room?" He gestured with his head towards a small pile in the room's corner. "However, my primary concern is, why does she want to avoid Ikezawa so much that she has devised a detailed plan?"

"What?!"

Naoki quickly clamped his hand over Yuuki's mouth. "Let's put things back the way they were and continue this conversation in our room," he said. "Time's running out."

* * *

"But I thought Kotoko liked that dummy!" Yuuki protested in their shared bedroom. "He always hung around her, walked her to summer classes, and now he even works at her dad's restaurant. I figured he was a shoo-in for husband-to-be once she gave up on you."

"That does make sense," his brother stated, eyes focused on the bedroom wall. "I wonder if in his…enthusiasm he crossed over a line."

"Huh?" Yuuki queried, eyes confused.

"Never mind, grown-up stuff." Naoki smiled as he patted his brother's shoulder. "I think I'll keep an eye on the situation, maybe check with her friends and see if they know something."

"Asking bakas about bakas," Yuuki muttered. "Good luck with that."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"I am, you are, he is… And the plural conjo...conju...thingies of this verb are all the same! Why does English have to be so difficult, Kato?" Kotoko whined the next morning as she sat on a bench near the track.

"Believe it or not, English speakers say the same thing about Japanese," he replied. "Of course, their language only uses one alphabet."

"Yes," she sighed. "Don't _even_ talk to me about my kanji skills. I've had third graders laugh at me."

"Do we need to add an extra session for Japanese?" he inquired. "Yoshida's minor is Japanese literature, so I think he'd be the best tutor for that subject."

"Really? Do you think he would help me?" she asked with a smile. "But I probably need to get this class improved first before spending extra time on another."

"Yes, you should ease into it. It might startle the professors if Kotorin suddenly turned into a genius," Kato teased.

"Genius," she repeated. "As if." She blinked away a mental image of Irie-kun, then her eyes focused on two lagging figures on the track. She stood and cupped her hands to her mouth. "Good work, guys! Only one more lap!"

They seemed to slow and sag for a moment then continued on.

"Speaking of genius," Kotoko began as she dug through her purse, "look at what I came up with for you!" After unlocking the screen, she opened the app and held the phone out to him. For a moment his eyes appeared to pop out of their sockets.

"Is that me?" he asked. At her nod, he added, "It is very…different."

"Yes!" She bounced as she moved her finger to manipulate the app. "It is casual yet almost cutting edge trendy. With your…" she gestured up and down, "…skinniness, I believe we can pull it off. Here are some other outfits we can make with just a few more items of clothing. I'd like for us to visit some second hand shops soon and see how close we can get to these."

"It looks great, but appearances aren't everything. What about, you know, actually talking to girls. A real conversation, I mean."

"It seems that you no longer think of me as a girl," Kotoko muttered under her breath, then smiled brightly. "Well, some people say that I talk too much! So I will turn my _weakness_ into a _strength_ for you!"

"Wh-what?!" was all that Kato could manage.

"Don't worry." Kotoko waved off his concern with a laugh. "We will go on practice dates, all of you. Well, not all at once…that would be strange. And a little kinky. But one at a time! Yes, that's what I mean. That will work great! And if you promise not to fall for them, I'll get my best friends to go on dates as well. All of you will be as smooth-talking as hosts by the time I'm through with you!"

Kato produced a choked laugh. "That may be beyond our capabilities. But if we can be with a girl without being tongue-tied, that will be good enough."

"What…will…be…good…enough?" huffed Tanaka as he and Aoki limped to the bench before collapsing on the ground.

"Kotorin is going to teach us how to talk with girls so they won't run away. Plus she is making us over. Look at me!" He grabbed the phone from Kotoko and waved it at them.

"Wow!" They leaned together and scrolled through the images. "What a cool app! It even has your face!"

"Did you do ours?" asked Tanaka.

"Yes," she replied, leaning forward to retrieve her phone. "But you have to continue with your diet and exercise for it to look right. Here you are!" she stated as she passed the phone to him.

"Red highlights in my hair?" he gasped. "That looks…rad!"

"What about me?" requested Aoki eagerly. "Do I get to look all hip?"

"No," Kotoko answered, "for you I am going for the mature scholarly look, someone that can be depended on. That way the club can appeal to different types of women." She grasped one hand each of Tanaka and Aoki. "And please, for the sake of the new you, _don't_ use 'rad' or 'hip' in front of a girl!"

Their eyes widened as they nodded soberly.

Kato cleared his throat. "Kotorin, when will we all be ready?" he asked.

"What, she lets you call her 'Kotorin'?" demanded Aoki. "Why do you get special treatment?"

"It's all right," Kotoko laughed, waving her hands. "It's easier than correcting you guys every time you say it. And I'm used to it now, so you can all call me that. Plus, with all those posters that are going up around campus this week, I might as well change my name!" She playfully scowled at them then clapped her hands and put on a dramatic face. "Never fear, I'll have you all ready by the Fall Festival, for my movie's premiere. I'll take Kato first, then Tanaka-san, then Aoki-san. Now you two must lose weight to look that way, so keep on exercising. It will be easier now that you can see the end result, right?"

Their chorused "Yes!" was loud enough to be heard from the path hidden by the tall bushes behind them. As the subsequent sounds indicated that the people were getting ready to leave the track area, Irie Naoki straightened from the light pole that he had been leaning against for the past few minutes and proceeded towards the center of campus.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Locations with glacial Internet speeds provide fewer distractions from writing. I finished lots of chapters; just polishing them up.

 **Chapter 11**

Kotoko had barely seated herself in Advanced English when someone sat down beside her. To say that she was surprised it was Naoki would be an understatement. "Eek...oop!" she sputtered as she leaned away from him in astonishment.

"What a greeting," he commented drily. "I don't know exactly how that would be translated into English, but it would be interesting to see you try."

"Irie-kun! What are you doing here?"

"I believe I was planning ask the same question. But for you, the yes or no type may be simpler. So, is the purpose of your elaborate masquerade to elude Ikezawa?"

"Kin-chan?" Kotoko laughed nervously. "What…?"

"You said as much after the last class," he interrupted. "I know that he has been…vociferous…in his pursuit of you, but has he been behaving like a gentleman?"

Kotoko stared at him blankly. "What can I say?" she thought to herself. "I don't want to tell him that my purpose was to create distance between him—Irie-kun—and me so that I can get over my one-sided love. " In the meantime, the silence grew as she could come up with no good answer to the sudden—and unexpected—question.

However, Naoki interpreted the lack of response as confirmation of his suspicions. Added to Kotoko's own statement and the misconstrued list in her bedroom were Chef Wannabe's recent antics in the classroom and college cafeteria that kept Kotoko in a constant state of mortification. Even high school memories of Ikezawa clinging to or pawing an unwilling Kotoko appeared to be evidence that the idiot had been nursing an unhealthy obsession for Kotoko for a good long while.

Before he could attempt to restate the question, Naoki heard a familiar commotion from the corridor. Acting quickly, he scooted his chair back and shoved Kotoko and her bag onto the floor under the table in front of him. He then moved the chair forward again, effectively trapping her between his legs and the front modesty panel of the table.

"Kotoko!" Kinnosuke's voice boomed in the half-empty lecture hall. "Where are you? I am here to guard you from that devil Irie again!"

Kotoko closed her eyes in embarrassment and cringed closer to Naoki's leg.

"You!" Kinnosuke had located Naoki in his unusual location and was advancing, finger pointing in accusation. "What have you done with Kotoko? I have not seen her for two days!"

Naoki leaned forward nonchalantly, his left hand moving beneath the table to rest on Kotoko's head to keep her still. "She never showed up in the cafeteria the other day?" he queried.

"No! And she is not here again!" Kinnosuke's eyes roamed the room.

"She must have dropped the class," Naoki suggested. "Won't that make you feel relieved?"

Kinnosuke spun around and glared at him. "Yes!" he spat. "Now that she will be out of the reach of such a lecherous man as you, she will realize her true feelings for me, Kin-chan!"

The slight jump against his leg at that outburst gave an edge to Naoki's next words. "Just remember to be civilized about this, Ikezawa. We are not in the Stone Age, you know."

Kinnosuke's face became completely blank. "Stone Age? What do rocks have to do—Hah! Don't try to distract me, you wise-ass!" He leveled a sneer at him as he backed out of the row. "Kotoko will be mine, Irie. I swear it!"

After he clattered down the hall, Naoki let out a long breath. "Well, that was refreshing." He pushed back his chair and looked down at the wide-eyed face staring up at him between his legs. "I apologize for placing you in a fairly…provocative position, but I thought you would want to avoid that encounter."

"Huh?" Kotoko's face reflected her confusion, but Naoki could not determine which of his statements had caused it. He stood to assist her to her feet, then grabbed hold as her wobbly legs dropped her sideways. He held out the adjacent chair and she plopped into its seat.

"Would you like me to remain with you during class?" he asked.

"Oh no!" Kotoko protested. "I will be fine alone back here. You should stay in your regular spot." She gestured toward his usual table. "Matsumoto-san will not be happy to sit by herself."

Naoki glanced down. Matsumoto had entered shortly after Kinnosuke's tempestuous exit and appeared unconcerned that he had not yet arrived. "Not that I care that much for her happiness, but we ought to keep appearances as close to normal as possible, I suppose. Although I doubt your swain will return again. You probably can forgo the disguise in the future." He stood and pushed his chair in, then paused as he looked down at her. "You know that if anyone is…bothering you, you can ask for help. Remember what I told you in our doubles match. 'You're not alone'."

Kotoko blinked up at him.

He gave a brief laugh. "Just think about what I said, okay?"

"O-kay," she replied softly as she watched him walk away. "Oh, Irie-kun, don't be nice to me!" she sighed. "My feelings for you aren't leaving fast enough, and now you're making it even harder to get over you!"


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

He was sitting in the corner next to the windows and away from their usual table in the cafeteria. Satomi and Jinko probably would not have noticed him except for the fact that he waved at them.

They stopped abruptly and exclaimed in unison, "Irie Naoki!?" As he continued to gesture at them, they proceeded cautiously until they reached his table.

Naoki stood politely and gave an uncharacteristic smile. "Would you join me today, please?"

Speechless, they placed the trays on the table and sat down, eyes not leaving his face.

"You are Jinko-san and Satomi-san, right? Kotoko's friends?" he asked them, reseating himself.

"Yes," Jinko answered, "but why did you call us over? We're really not friends with you…" she trailed off.

"But we do have a common concern, don't we?" he replied. "Kotoko."

Satomi and Jinko looked at each other in confusion. "Concern…?" Satomi ventured.

Naoki gestured outside. The table they were at was the only one in the cafeteria with a clear line of sight to a particular bench in the college commons area. A bench that was currently occupied by Kotoko, eating lunch from a bento box while thumbing through study cards.

"This entire week she has avoided the cafeteria and has changed her daily routine. She even conceals herself in our class that Ikezawa routinely invades." He paused and looked away from them, back to the lonely figure on the bench. "This is difficult to ask, but has Ikezawa—that Kin-chan," he gritted out, "done anything out of line to Kotoko? I recall that he was quite aggressive in high school, and now it appears she is trying to hide from him. I know that I—my family and her father, that is—need to know if he has done something to cause this."

After a moment of silence and blank stares, Satomi said slowly, "She _is_ trying to avoid him right now. Jinko and I are using a text code to warn her when he's out and about, but it's not beca—"

Jinko suddenly slammed her palm to the table. "Irie-kun, Kin-chan has been in love with Kotoko since our first year of high school. And that is the same time that Kotoko fell in love with you. So all those years have been wearing on him, eating him alive—" Jinko was well into her dramatic story, hands gesturing in all directions. "It was only a matter of time before he snapped!" Satomi let out a yelp as Jinko grabbed her arm suddenly. "We could see it coming, right, Satomi?" She squeezed her arm.

"Ah, oh, yes, that's right!" Satomi stuttered, eyes wide. "His…uh…frustration is at its peak. He must have said something for sure, huh, Jinko?" Satomi lobbed the ball back into Jinko's court with a glare.

"Yes, and now that Kotoko is starting to see other men, the monster has been unleashed!" Jinko's eyes had been focused above Naoki's head, then they suddenly locked onto his face and her voice lowered menacingly. "He thought that once her feelings for you disappeared, she would automatically fall in love with him!"

"Just because he is always there!" ventured Satomi, nodding vigorously. "He is so deluded that he will not believe that all she feels for him is friendship."

"We must protect her from him!" Jinko stood with an arm raised high and a martial look in her eyes.

"Yes, that's right!" Satomi quickly followed her lead.

"Umm, okay," Naoki responded. "Should we share contact information then?" The two girls dropped back into their seats and stared at him open-mouthed. "In case you need to get in touch with me?" He spoke slowly and used single syllable words before he aimed his cell phone in their direction.

"Ah, ah, yes!" The two girls fumbled in their bags for their phones and stared at him during the infrared transaction.

Naoki turned off the display and pocketed his phone. "Now, I must go to my next class. Text me if something happens, but don't use my number frivolously," he added sternly. "No cute cat pictures, no Snapchat-filtered photos, no Pokemon Go updates. I get enough of that from Kotoko."

"Cold-blooded jerk," Jinko muttered under her breath.

A brief grin graced Naoki's face before he turned to depart. "I've been called that before."

After Naoki left the building, Satomi slapped Jinko's arm. "What was all that nonsense you were spewing? You know that Kin-chan would not lay a hand on Kotoko even if a mosquito landed on her!"

Jinko, meanwhile, was laughing so hard that it took her a moment to recover her equilibrium. "Yes, but did you see his face? He bought that story, and he is supposed to be a genius! After all those years of looking down at us, he is so easily fooled!"

Satomi smiled widely in recollection. "Yes, it does feel good. But telling him that Kotoko is dating other men? You know that they are her 'projects' right now."

"Yes, projects that both of us have been roped into helping with!" Jinko sighed. "But maybe that will make him take another look at her…"

"Jinko!" Her arm received another slap. "Don't even think that way! Kotoko has been hurt enough by that bastard!"

"He-ey! Did I say anything about Kotoko getting back with him?" Jinko protested, lifting her elbow and rubbing to ease the sting. Satomi was stronger than she looked. "I'd just like him to feel a little bit of the heartache she has felt these past three years!"

"But Jinko!" Satomi's eyes were wide. "Did you ever think that we would have Irie-kun's number in our phone?" The girls stared at their phones and at each other, then squealed and broke into a fit of giggles reminiscent of middle schoolers instead of mature college students.

At the same time, Naoki replayed the conversation in his head as he walked along. "How much of that was reliable information and how much was bullshit?" he asked himself.

He could certainly discard the part about dating other men. Since he had overheard the conversation early that morning, he had a pretty good idea of Kotoko's relationship with the anime fans. While he had no great confidence in her ability to bring off the transformations that she proposed, he had to admire her willingness to help them, even if it was in trade for tutoring services. But he could certainly see how that idiot Ikezawa would misconstrue the situation if he saw her in their company.

He concluded that he had gained no new information about the situation, except that Kotoko had the ability to attract friends who were simultaneously extremely loyal and extremely foolish.

"And what was that nonsense about Kotoko's feelings for me disappearing?"


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

On Saturday the Irie and Aihara families were finally able to spread out into the completed expansion of the Irie house. It had originally been planned as a grand celebration, with a ribbon cutting and barbecue, but Kotoko's renunciation of Naoki had put a distinct damper on the occasion. Mrs. Irie was still moping around, so the only things served were champagne and apple juice, depending upon the age of the drinker, and an assortment of appetizers prepared by Mr. Aihara. Since listening to Mrs. Irie's sighs was getting on everyone's nerves, they quickly progressed to the business of moving items.

Mrs. Irie led Kotoko to her larger room in the new wing. "Kotoko-chan, you've made do with Yuuki's room for so long. Here you will have more space and more privacy." She sighed wistfully, "Oh course, I had hoped that you would be sharing the room in the near future…"

"Oh, wow, Obasama! With south-facing windows, I'll have lots of sunlight coming in!" Kotoko began chattering to distract her as soon as she set her box down. "You chose such a calming paint color for the walls ('not pink!' she added mentally), and I love the built-in drawers in the closet."

As if Kotoko had not even spoken, Mrs. Irie leaned dramatically against the wall, placing her arm across her eyes. "How did it come to this? Did I read the stars incorrectly? Am I being punished? Maybe I should have returned the baby girl clothes all those years ago… Oh, Naoki!"

"What?" her older son asked from the doorway, with two large boxes in his arms. He closed his eyes in resignation as his startled mother shrieked and almost fell over, causing Kotoko to jump and just about hit the floor herself in an instant replay. "Where do you want these, Kotoko?"

"Just outside the closet door will be fine," she replied. "Obasama, would you like me to make you a cup of tea? We can relax on the patio and listen to the fountain. I can put all this away later."

"Oh, Kotoko-chan!" Mrs. Irie put her arms around her as they exited the room. "Such a comfort to me! Almost like a _daughter_!"

Naoki rolled his eyes. "You can stop hiding in the toilet now, Yuuki," he called. His younger brother slunk in. "Did you bring all her toiletries from our bathroom?"

"Yes." Yuuki kicked his foot aimlessly. "Girls sure have a lot of stuff, don't they? They have special soap for their face, and then there are matching smelly shampoos and lotions. And makeup! Not to mention that box that she told me never to open unless I wanted to die painfully."

Naoki laughed as he headed toward the closet with an armload of blouses. "We men have it a lot easier, don't we?"

"Onii-chan, why are you hanging up Kotoko's clothes? Shouldn't she be doing that?"

His brother emerged from the closet to pick up a stack of skirts. "She is entertaining our mother and lifting her spirits, hopefully. We can help out some, as well."

"I suppose so." Yuuki opened the box with school supplies and knick-knacks and began replacing them on her desk as best he could remember. "But you're not going to put up her…you know…"

"It would take Kotoko a week to get over the embarrassment if I did," he chuckled. "The expression that she'd have on her face _almost_ tempts me, though."

Yuuki snorted. "Yeah, that baka sure can be funny. But I'm still not sure about her—"

"Hmph!" his brother interrupted him. "Look at all the clothes she has," he said, gesturing to the now full closet. "Where in the world did Mother think _my_ clothes would fit?!"

"Oooonii-chan!"

* * *

The next day Kotoko was hyped up for the shopping excursion. One of the bonuses was that she and Kato would be far from the college campus. While Jinko and Satomi were helpful, she was getting tired of constantly taking detours to dodge Kinnosuke.

Strangely enough, she felt no need to avoid Naoki. A less stressful atmosphere seemed to exist in her encounters with him during their common class, and at home he had surprised her by helping her settle into her new room, a great contrast to when she first moved into the Irie house. And their conversations appeared to be more limited in snarkiness lately. Although her heart did tend to skip a beat whenever he would first come into view, it no longer ached; she knew she was not over him, but did this mean that her emotions were settling down?

No matter, today was going to be fun. Kotoko loved shopping anyway, but the added challenge of producing a complete image change made her skin tingle in excitement. As she stepped off the train at the designated stop, she almost danced over to the waiting Kato.

"So, are you ready?" she called gaily.

* * *

"If shopping was an Olympic sport, Kotorin, you'd win the gold medal! You don't look any different than when we first began, but I'm exhausted!" Kato's shoulders slumped as he sat at the outdoor café table. Noticing that he had emptied his water glass after only two minutes, Kotoko silently shifted her glass next to his and waved at the waiter to bring her a new one.

"Yes, but just think of all we accomplished," she spoke gently to him as she leaned over and patted his hand. "By only purchasing these eight items, you have the makings of almost twenty different outfits."

"But I'll never remember all that!" he moaned. "Normally I wear whatever doesn't smell too badly!"

"And that stops now!" Kotoko ceased the patting and smacked his hand sharply. "I'll make a chart of what goes with what, and it's up to you to keep up with the laundry!" Her eyes unfocused as her mind drifted along a well-worn synaptic path. "I wonder if Irie-kun would have turned out this way if Obasama didn't take care of the laundry for him…" An image of the fastidious Naoki sniffing a dirty shirt wouldn't quite come into focus.

"Kotorin! Kotorin! Kotoko!" Kato's whispers may not have penetrated her fog, but his hand shaking her shoulder certainly did.

"Wha-what!?"

"Matsumotorre!" he gestured. "Over there!"

She turned but was unable to see a tall figure with luxuriant dark curls in the pedestrian crowd. "Are you sure?" she asked.

"Positive!" Kato averred.

"Well, maybe she had some shopping to do today also," Kotoko smiled. "Have you recovered enough to meet Jinko for your haircut now?"


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Kotoko should have known that her good mood wouldn't last forever. She had almost skipped to school Monday on a stratospherically high note after the successful shopping trip and hair makeover session. Of course, Kato had nearly passed out from shock after Jinko finished with him. Apparently, a virtual haircut on a smart phone did not prepare him for clippers and styling gel applied to his actual head. Luckily, breathing into a paper bag for a few minutes let him recuperate enough to totter home with bags of clothes and hair styling products.

The crash came as Kotoko exited her last class, the only one besides Advanced English that she did not have in common with either Satomi or Jinko. Matsumoto Yuko was waiting for her in the hall; this was unexpected for, to the best of Kotoko's knowledge, none of Matsumoto's classes were on that floor.

"Hello, Aihara-san" was the brunette beauty's greeting.

Although startled, Kotoko replied, "Good afternoon to you, Matsumoto-san. Were you looking for me?"

"Why, yes," was the response. "I wanted to let you know that you have been missed at Tennis Club."

Kotoko presented her a confused expression. "Didn't Sudo-sempai explain that I was taking a leave of absence?"

She tossed her hair over her shoulder in a pseudo-casual move. "He mentioned it, but I was speaking with Irie-kun at the time and wasn't paying close attention. However, now that I have witnessed what was behind it with my own eyes, I just wanted to congratulate you."

"For what?" Kotoko's question was blunt. She knew that Matsumoto had deliberately brought Naoki's name into the conversation. "Just to rub a little salt into my wounds, I suppose," she thought.

"For your new romantic interest, naturally. And I suppose on your maturity at recognizing who would be a more suitable partner for you than Irie-kun." She leaned down to Kotoko's level with a feminine version of Naoki's smirk.

It only took a moment for Kotoko to recall Kato's frantic exclamation of "Matsumotorre!" during their outing and realize what conclusion Matsumoto had reached. "But that's not—"

"Is the annoying insect creature unaware that he is no longer the front runner for your affections? Is that why he continues to disrupt classes in pursuit of you?"

"Kin-chan is only a—"

"You really ought to let him know where he stands. It isn't attractive to juggle too many men at one time. Does Sudo-san even know that he's been dumped?"

"You know Sudo-sempai and I—"

"Although your current lover isn't much of an improvement over either one of them, is he?" She posed with a finger to her temple in mock thought. "He looks rather gauntly plain and uninteresting. Perhaps you prefer to be the lively and colorful partner in the relationship?"

Kotoko's frustration had now reached the point at which her eyes shot sparks and she panted like a bull preparing to make a run at the toreador. "Do you judge everyone by their appearance?!" she finally burst out, fists clenched at her sides. "For your information, Kato is—"

"Not really interested in the details, Aihara-san. I've got to go now. I'll give your best to Irie-kun when I see him at practice—if I remember. Toodles!" And with a backwards wave, Matsumoto Yuko swanned off, leaving Kotoko with a full head of steam and no one to vent it on.

* * *

"Aa-aa-ai-gh!" Kotoko's scream, combined with the bang of the Anime Club door into the wall, caused all of the men in the room to jump, then cower.

"K-Ko-Kotorin?" queried Nishimura nervously.

"She! Makes! Me! So! Mad!" Kotoko stomped into the room noisily and grabbed an object from his hand.

"Umm…" he faintly protested, reaching vainly for it.

Pacing in the confined quarters and swinging the implement wildly as the club members scrambled for cover with each pass, she continued her rant.

"Who does she think she is?!" Swish! Duck!

"Saying things like that!" Swish! Duck!

"Interrupting me!" Swish! Duck!

"Every!" Swish! Duck!

"Single!" Swish! Duck!

"Time!" Swish! Duck!

She paused to catch her breath. "And then, to insult Kato, based on his looks alone! That-that—Matsumotorre! I'd like to—" Kotoko stopped and stared at her hand. "What _is_ this?"

Nishimura hesitantly approached and took it from her gently. "It's a prop of Kotorin's weapon. I customized it from a tennis racquet, and I'd really appreciate it if you didn't destroy it."

"Sorry, Nishimura-san." Kotoko hung her head. "I suppose I was a little out of control."

"Wait!" commanded Aoki. "Did you say that Matsumotorre insulted Kato?"

"Yes," she replied with a pout. "She said that he was not good-looking enough for me to date."

The four looked at each other, then back at Kotoko. "So? You're NOT dating him. Why were you so upset?"

Kotoko looked at them in disbelief. "Because he's my friend! All of you guys are! What kind of person lets someone trash talk their friends?" She stared at the racquet still being cradled by Nishimura. "If I had that when she said those things, I would have banged it over her head. It would be even better if it shot ray beams like in the movie."

"They're not exactly ray beams–" Yoshida began, only to be pulled aside by Tanaka.

"Don't try to explain the difference, Yoshida-kun," Tanaka whispered. "You'll just confuse her. Remember 'Wars' and 'Trek'." [A/N: Chapter 8]

At that moment the new-and-improved Kato opened the door and entered the club room. Aoki turned to him and asked politely, "Good afternoon. Can I help you?"

Taken aback, Kato gaped at him. "Aoki, what do you mea-"

"Kaaa-to!" Kotoko sprung towards him, her bouncing pace revealing that the dark mood had passed. She grabbed his arm with one hand and waved her other arm at the rest of the club. "Ta-daaah! Now, don't you agree that Matsumoto-san wouldn't have said those nasty things about Kato-kun if he had looked like this when she saw us?"

"Toshi?!"

"Kotorin, you're a miracle worker!"

"I would never have believed it was you!"

"You sure Nevilled up!"

Kato's face flushed as he rubbed his hand over the back of his now-shorn head. "Yeah, I had trouble convincing some professors that I wasn't an intruder today."

"How about the other students' reactions? Especially the girls!" Kotoko eagerly asked.

"Um, several people that I didn't know introduced themselves to me. A couple of them were girls." Kato ducked his head in embarrassment. "But I still can't talk to them easily."

"Bah!" Kotoko waved his concern away. "We'll take care of that in no time!"

"But Kotorin," Kato began, "what were you saying about Matsumotorre? I told you that she saw us yesterday."

"Well, that—" she began.

"Kato, you wouldn't believe it!"

"She was so angry!"

"Kotorin was going to beat her up for your sake!"

Tanaka laughed and added, "Just like an big sister protecting her brother from a bully!"

Kotoko smiled as she watched the club members laugh among themselves. They were a little…different, to be sure, but overall they were nice guys. She recalled her first impression of them and was embarrassed to recall that she had immediately judged and rejected them, similar to Matsumoto. She wondered at the warmth in her chest now when she thought of them. It was more comfortable than the jolt she would get whenever Naoki was around. It reminded her of her feelings for Jinko and Satomi, with a bit of protectiveness like she felt for Yuuki—when he wasn't being a pill, of course.

Her thoughts were interrupted when Nishimura asked, "Kotorin, even though I'm not being made over, will you be my Onee-chan too?"

She couldn't let that pass by. "What do you mean, 'Onee-chan'? You're all older than I am! There's no way that could happen!" She smiled at them to let them know she wasn't angry. "But I will protect you from all the evil Matsumotorres like a big sister, though. Never fear!" she declared, pointing her index finger dramatically at the ceiling.

"Hey, Toru," Aoki called out. "You might need protection _from_ Onee-chan once she sees what you did to her costume in the final scene!"

"What? What about my costume?" Kotoko turned toward Yoshida. Without looking Kato's way, she pointed a finger at him, and ordered, "Don't open that drawer!"


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

"Boss," Odawara leaned over and whispered to Aihara Shigeo, "Kinnosuke's blubbering into the dishwater again."

"What?!" Kotoko's father leaned back and looked through the doorway into the kitchen. "What's up with that boy? He improved so much over the past few weeks."

"Has something happened with your daughter lately? Maybe that's his problem. The last time this occurred was when you two moved back in with the Iries."

"Kotoko?" Mr. Aihara rubbed his rag in circles on the bar surface. "She hasn't mentioned anything about Kinnosuke. Things are a little tense at the house, what with the Missus in a tizzy because Kotoko says she won't marry Naoki-kun, but that alone should have him dancing on the ceiling, not crying over pots and pans."

"Well, whatever it is, we can't have him out here with customers. I'll finish up here so you can talk to him."

"Why me?"

Odawara grinned cheekily. "Because you're the boss!"

* * *

"And then that stuck-up girl in Kotoko's class said—sniff!—that Kotoko was tired of me and was—sniff!—dating someone else!" Kinnosuke blew his nose loudly into the dishrag in his hands. "I was so upset that I couldn't concentrate on work. I got so many orders wrong that the manager yelled at me and made me clean the eating area all by myself after the lunch wave! Waaah!"

Mr. Aihara patted Kinnosuke's heaving shoulders with a sigh. He picked up the abused dishrag with two fingers and tossed it into the laundry bin before speaking. "It is a shame that she disrupted your other job, but part of being a professional chef is leaving personal business and emotions behind while on duty. The customer must always come first. And besides, what do you mean that Kotoko is dating someone? I'll have you know that she talks normally with Naoki-kun and doesn't go into those dazes that she used to when she was around him. And Mrs. Irie is upset about it because it looks like her special dream has come to an end." He slapped both hands onto the work table. "So! That girl is probably not telling the truth. You shouldn't let yourself be deceived so easily."

Kinnosuke raised his gaze from the floor. "But it's not Irie that Miss Snooty said she was seeing. It's someone else! And someone who isn't even good-looking! Wh-why would Kotoko go out with an ugly man when she has m-m-me?!"

Wincing as he took in Kinnosuke's reddened swollen eyes, hangdog mouth and dried trail of snot from the left nostril, Mr. Aihara sighed. "'Onna no kokoro wa onna shiru (Only a woman can understand another woman's mind.)' So we men had best not even try."

Standing, he smacked Kinnosuke on the back of his head. "Now! Attend to restaurant business for the rest of the evening. Later I will investigate this mysterious man that my daughter is dating without my knowledge or consent."

"Fa-a-ather!" was the heartfelt reply.

"And quit calling me 'Father'!"

* * *

While exiting their last class of the day together, Irie Naoki wondered at the coincidence of Matsumoto Yuko sitting next to him in every course they shared. Well, he supposed chance had nothing to do with it, since she continued to barrage him with invitations for meals or movies, but his indifference wasn't exactly getting through to her. As he listened halfheartedly to her voice chatter on, he realized that, in some ways, she reminded him of another stubborn person…

His thoughts were jerked suddenly back to the present when his brain registered a name that Matsumoto spoke.

"I'm sorry," he apologized with a smile. "My mind was on something the professor commented on. You were saying?"

Matsumoto's eyes glinted. She doubted that was what had caused his faraway look, but never mind. "I was just mentioning how much Aihara-san has changed. Apparently she has given up her pursuit of you and is dating random men about the campus."

Naoki grunted. "Don't believe everything you hear. The rumor mill here is known both for its ferocity and its inaccuracy."

"But this is no rumor!" Matsumoto protested with a laugh. "I'm a witness to it myself!"

"Really?" He raised one eyebrow. "I don't believe that even the most gullible student here would accept a story of Kotoko as a loose woman."

Gritting her teeth at his use of Kotoko's given name, she continued. "You mistake me. I am not commenting on her actual morals. It is just that she has been stringing along that cafeteria worker, then Sudo-san, and now she has another man panting after her."

"Indeed?" Naoki paused, his interest caught at last. "There is someone besides those two?"

"Why, yes. I saw them myself a few days ago, sitting at an outdoor café, as cozy as could be!"

"And who was this person?" he asked, his tone deceptively idle.

"I'm not sure, but her standards have certainly dropped as far as looks go." Even though Naoki did not join her in laughter, she continued. "I warned her the other day that she shouldn't try to juggle too many men or problems could arise. Since she wouldn't listen to me, I decided to let that poor insect man know that he was out of the running. At least that should keep him out of our English class, right?"

Matsumoto had previously believed that she would enjoy seeing the stoic Irie Naoki with an emotional expression. However, she was not pleased with the emotion directed her way at this time.

"Are you telling me that you told Ikezawa that Kotoko was seeing other men?"

She leaned backwards. "Why, yes, I did. I thought that he should—"

"I had considered you to be above such nonsense as interfering in something not of your business."

She gasped. "What—" but he was already out of earshot, walking away rapidly while pressing madly on the screen of his cell phone.

"It _is_ my business!" she fumed, but no one was listening.

* * *

Once Kotoko had been waved off, Satomi turned to Jinko. "Did you read Irie-kun's text?"

"About what that tennis snob did? That's why Kin-chan acted so weird when we tried to tell him to back off Kotoko for awhile."

"Jinko, even though I think he's a better match for Kotoko than Irie-kun, sometimes he's such a dumbass. Maybe Irie-kun is on to something."

Her companion paused and looked to the sky for inspiration. "Nah, he's still full of hot air. But it won't hurt anything to stick to Kotoko. It's not like we're not her friends or anything."

"Right!" Satomi agreed, hugging her. "Better safe than sorry!"


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

"Yu-u-u-uki!"

The Irie's younger son raised his eyes from his book and replied, "Yes, Mother?"

"Oh, Yuuki, dear, could you please come to the kitchen?"

Yuuki's face had a slight frown as he obeyed. His mother's voice seemed unnaturally high-pitched, and he and his brother usually interpreted that as meaning she was in the middle of one of her schemes. As a matter of self-preservation, he tried to stay out of her way during those times, but after more than a week of moping about baka Kotoko, it was a relief to have her somewhat back to her normal self.

What was _not_ normal was seeing a large serving of fruit-topped pudding on the table. Especially considering that dinner was in less than three hours. His mother was strict about only eating healthy snacks between meals, and the refreshment in front of him was enormous and so rich that it was bound to spoil even the most voracious appetite.

"What's this?" he asked suspiciously.

"I made it just for you! Here! Sit and eat." His mother firmly pushed him into the chair and even handed him the spoon.

He gazed at her with narrowed eyes but still filled his mouth with the treat. She watched him with an overly indulgent smile while he made inroads in the pudding. Just because he knew there was a catch didn't mean that he was going to turn down sweets.

At last she made her move. "So, Yuuki," she said in a deliberately casual tone, "Have you any idea about what Kotoko's been doing lately? She was out for a long time last weekend and she always comes in late."

"So that's it!" Yuuki thought. He took another heaping spoonful of pudding and put on a considering look. "Maybe she has another part-time job?" he ventured.

His mother posed with a finger to her chin and eyes focused upwards. "No, I don't think that's it. She is not coming home exhausted like she was last Christmas…" Her voice trailed off, then she clasped her hands in front of her chest dramatically. "Yuuki! You don't think that she has found another boyfriend, do you? I hope that's not the case, for I am sure that Onii-chan will come to his senses eventually. Have you heard anything?"

Yuuki snorted. "Who would date her? She is stupid, loud and clumsy. I would never fall for someone like that, and I don't know why you think Ani would."

"But Yuuki, it's true!" His mother leaned forward with hands clasped together. "Aihara-san heard that Kotoko was dating someone! I'm so upset that she hasn't told me anything. If this is correct, she must fear hurting my feelings."

"Wouldn't it just be that dimwit who works at her father's restaurant?"

"No, no, he is the one who told this to Aihara-san! And was quite upset about it, too. Aihara-san said he sobbed all evening and was completely useless."

For a moment Yuuki considered telling her about the mysterious items in Kotoko's room, but he didn't really understand what they meant and Naoki hadn't shared with him what he had found out from the baka friends. If his mother thought that he could find out more information for her, she would hound him to death. Even delicious pudding wasn't worth that. But if he could change her target…

"Well, Mom," he began. "It's a shame that Kotoko is keeping secrets from you." He took another bite and savored it slowly. "It's too bad we don't own a camera drone that could follow her around all day to discover what she's up to."

His mother sat as if petrified; the only sign of life was her steadily widening eyes. "Of course!" She suddenly jumped up and hurried from the room. As he heard her ascend the stairs, Yuuki's face acquired the typical Irie smirk. "Watch out, Kotoko. The paparazzi stalker is back on the warpath." Then he gave all his attention to the remaining dessert.

* * *

"Thanks, Onii-chan," Yuuki raised up on one elbow to accept the cup of fizzy water from Naoki.

His brother continued across the room and sat in his brother's desk chair. "I don't think you ate enough at dinner to cause an upset stomach. Could it be a fever or a cold?"

Yuuki leaned over and set the remainder of the drink on the floor. "I'll be okay. It's Mother's fault, anyway."

"What do you mean?"

"Mom heard from Aihara-san that Kotoko's dating someone and tried to get information by bribing me with food."

"You're weak, Ototo." Naoki grinned. "Was she successful?"

"Nah," Yuuki replied. "Apparently her dumbass former classmate at the restaurant found out and was so upset that he was even more incompetent than usual. I didn't know anyone else to name, so I…diverted her."

"Yu-u-uki. What did you do?"

His brother decided that this was a good time to finish his stomach-settling drink. After wiping his mouth with the sleeve of his pajamas, Yuuki bravely met his brother's eyes. "Onii-chan, unless you want to be memorialized in photos again, you might want to stay away from Kotoko for the next few days."

"Don't tell me—"

"She plans to find out for herself. She spent over an hour organizing her cameras and usual disguises."

Naoki's eyes closed and he groaned as he leaned back in the chair. "I thought her mood had improved this evening. Will the stalking begin tomorrow?"

"Yep. Are you going to warn Kotoko?"

"Even if I did, she wouldn't notice Mom, so I'm not going to waste my energy." He rubbed his face vigorously with both hands. "Well, that's one more pair of eyes watching over her. But I think I'll still call out the cavalry…"

"Onii-chan?" Yuuki queried but received no reply.


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: Why do I have so much fun picking on Yuuki?

 **Chapter 17**

The next morning after exercise Aoki and Tanaka were splashing themselves with water from outside faucets when they were startled by an interruption.

"Aoki Takeshi?"

Aoki fumbled for his glasses and turned toward the voice.

"I-I-Irie Naoki!"

"Do you think I could meet with you and your club members today? _Without_ Kotoko being present?"

* * *

"That is the history of Kotoko's lovelorn suitor," Naoki concluded. "He is apt to have a jealous fit at the drop of a hat and doesn't listen to reason, at times even threatening violence. I have been a witness—and a target—of several of these rages."

"H-how did you handle them?" asked Kato.

"Not in a very mature manner, I must admit," he answered wryly. "In fact, I usually exacerbated the situation. My concern is that he has become even more vocal since Kotoko entered college, and now he has been informed that Kotoko is dating a member of the Anime Club. Actually," he added, "I think it is you, Kato-san, whom he suspects. I don't suppose you noticed that you were being watched this morning, did you?"

After Kato's wide-eyed head shake, he continued, "Ikezawa was peeking through the bushes while you tutored her in English. I don't believe he paid any attention to you two on the track," motioning toward Aoki and Tanaka. "In addition, my mother was less than ten yards away filming everything and remained completely unobserved." He let out an exasperated breath. "If any of you plan to run for public office in the future, please don't do anything in the next few weeks that would keep you from getting elected. Believe me, at any time you may be on camera. No one has ever been able to control her."

"Why are you telling us this?" asked Tanaka bluntly.

"Depending upon what Ikezawa sees in the future, he may suspect any of you. I'm not doubting your ability to protect yourselves" ("Liar!" he thought) "but I think it would be wise to have a constant guard on Kotoko."

"What about now?" asked Kato, half rising to his feet.

"Two of her friends are watching over her. Kotoko doesn't like to miss meals, so we know where to find her at lunchtime," Naoki smiled.

Aoki cleared his throat. "So our members need to help make sure that this Ikezawa doesn't make any unwanted advances on Kotorin? How would we do that? None of us have classes with her."

"I know," Naoki replied. He looked around at the concerned men. "But perhaps there are times that you can escort her between classes." He pulled out a color-highlighted printout. "Here is her schedule. This is the course I have with her, and those she has with her friends. In most cases one of them can walk with her to her next class, but these are the gaps." He turned to Kato. "I know that she meets with you and the other two on some mornings. On those days, one of you can take her to her first class; then in the evening, accompany her to the train station after club. Once she reaches our house, she is safe."

It took less than two minutes for the club members to agree on an escort schedule; indeed, there were a few squabbles over who would be privileged to take a particular time slot. Once that was done, the members were silent except for muffled grunts and some obvious eye rolls at each other. With a sigh, the president turned to Naoki.

"Thank you for telling us about this possible danger to Kotorin. However, we are wondering why you are involved in this. The whole campus—even semi-outcasts like us—is aware of your relationship with her. If you are so averse to being with her, why are you going to all this trouble?"

Naoki flushed and hesitated before answering. "Just because I don't want to be pressured into a romantic relationship with Kotoko—my mother again, by the way—doesn't mean that I want her to come to harm. She's a…spirited person, and living with her has certainly made my life more exciting. And clumsy as she is, this isn't the first time that I've had to come to her rescue for some reason or another." He glanced at his watch. "Now, if you will excuse me, it's about time for my 'Kotoko-duty'."

The club members sat in silence after Naoki left. Kato leaned back in his chair and propped his feet on the table. "So, does anyone really think that is the only reason he is going to all this trouble?"

* * *

"Tanaka, your reaction to a day of shopping is quite different from Kato-kun's," Kotoko commented Saturday afternoon as they exited the shopping district.

"It's necessary," replied her companion briefly. "My major is marketing, and in a sense, that is what we are doing with this redesign. Why would I not do my best at it?"

"It makes my job a lot easier," laughed Kotoko. "I was dragging poor Kato-kun around by his collar at the end of the day Sunday!"

"I assume I will receive a clothes-matching chart like the one you made for him?"

"Yes, although yours will be less conp...compl...more simple. I had to give him several layers to cover up his thinness. Once you recognize what styles and colors suit you, I am sure that you can shop on your own without a problem."

"It sounds logical to me. What is next on our list?"

"Let's see." Kotoko pulled out her well-worn notepad. "We need to stop at a drug store and purchase the hair color that Jinko recommended. There's one near the train station, so let's head there now. We can call to let her know we're on our way once we've done that."

"Sure thing," he agreed. "I wonder how Kato's date with your other friend will go tomorrow."

"He should be all right if he uses that list of conversation topics I made for him. Anyway, I'm sure Satomi will take good care of him. Let's just hope she doesn't decide he needs to do more shopping!" she said, laughing.

* * *

The movie he had attended with friends had been enjoyable, but even more entertaining to Yuuki was the odd couple he was now following. Ducking behind light poles and benches, he trailed Kotoko and the sturdily-built man into the drug store. He pulled his cap over his eyes and held a magazine in front of his face as he followed them down aisles and poked his head around corners to keep them under surveillance.

"Why is the baka buying hair color?" he asked out loud, flattening himself against the shelves as they headed to the register.

He was so involved in his pursuit that he forgot the magazine and was almost out the door when he was propelled backwards. A hand gripped his sweater's neckband and a husky voice asked, "Aren't you forgetting to pay for that?"

"Sorry! Sorry!" Yuuki struggled to pull free. "I didn't mean to—I'll pay—"

"Of course you will, Yuuki," his mother answered in her normal tone. "It will come straight out of your allowance. Now head to the register and pay for this—" Her voice broke off as she looked at the magazine cover. "Yuuki! Why are you reading _this_?!"

Yuuki's eyes focused and widened on the magazine that he had grabbed at random. "Wha-"

"My baby son, reading shoujo manga!" His mother engulfed him in a close hug. "Are you researching love? Is there someone you like? Who is she? Do you need your mother's help?"

"No-o-o-o!" was his wail in response.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

"Ai-chan! Well met!" called out Mr. Irie to his old friend and current lodger at the entrance to the market.

"Iri-chan! What are you doing here on a Sunday?"

"I had to run to the office for a few hours and Mother told me to pick up dog food for Chibi on the way home. And you, are you picking up ingredients for the restaurant?"

"Just a few staples. My apprentice—Kinnosuke, you remember—has been absent-minded of late and knocked some jars of seasonings to the floor."

"Oh, yes," Mr. Irie nodded. "He's the one who, uh—"

"Yes," Mr. Aihara sighed, "he likes Kotoko." He grabbed his friend's arm. "Say, did the Missus have any luck finding out if Kotoko is dating anyone? Someone told Kinnosuke that, and he has been a mess ever since. I think he has been prowling the campus at all hours trying to discov-" He broke off when his companion stopped suddenly.

"Uh, Ai-chan." Mr. Irie's eyes were focused on a park bench half a block away. "Over there, isn't that-?"

* * *

"How long have I been living with the Iries? A little over a year, ever since the earthquake knocked down our house," Kotoko replied to Aoki's question. They had just left the barber, and his hair was now trimmed and layered. Aoki was carrying the result of their shopping spree while Kotoko juggled two cups of soda.

"I just asked because we—the club—know that you and Irie-san have a, erm, complicated history. We've seen the signs around campus and in the cafeteria…"

"That Kin-chan!" Kotoko moaned. "And Mrs. Irie wasn't much better! It seems like I'm always the subject of gossip and I don't really do anything to deserve it." She let out a long, heart-felt sigh. "I am trying so hard to get over Irie-kun, but it's not happening quickly. At least staying busy with you guys keeps me from thinking about him too much."

"You're going to be plenty busy in a few weeks. You realize you're going to be the center of attention when 'Legend of the Racquet Warrior' is shown at the festival," Aoki reminded her. "Drink!"

"Oh! Yes!" Kotoko held out the cup and he sipped from the straw as they walked. "At least that should be positive talk," she declared. "I really am honored that you chose me as the subject."

"I don't believe that was your first reaction, was it?" he teased.

"Not hardly!" she laughed. "Of course, now that I know everyone better it's different. I hope that these changes will let more people get to know you. It makes me a little ashamed to remember how I judged you on the surface like everyone else does."

"But you decided to be friends before all the changes. We club members will not forget that."

"Aw-w-w!" Kotoko felt tears forming in her eyes and raised a hand to wipe them, forgetting that she was holding the drinks. As a result, she spent the next few minutes getting her face and hands patted dry by Aoki.

* * *

That was the scene which was viewed by her father and Mr. Irie as they huddled behind displays of vegetables.

"That must be him!" Mr. Aihara muttered. "But Kinnosuke said that he wasn't attractive, and I don't see anything wrong with his looks."

"Right, Ai-chan, although there's no comparison with my Nao!"

"Of course not," he laughed, "but that's because he takes after your wife!" The resultant exchange of mock blows was blurry in the recording, primarily because the videocamera had been focused on the couple of interest, which happened to be—of course—the same two people the men were observing.

* * *

"At any rate," Kotoko continued when she was slightly less damp, "I'm still the winner in our relationship. Kato-kun has helped me so much in English. Last week I was called on twice by Nakagawa-sensei and I was correct both times. Irie-kun mentioned it last night at dinner and offered to help me with pronunciation this evening." She leaned toward Aoki confidingly. "You know, Irie-kun speaks English better than Sensei. In high school, the Class A girls took a vote and decided that he sounds just like Logan Lerman!"

"Oh, you mean from the Percy Jackson franchise?'

"What?" asked Kotoko. "No, silly, from the Wallflower movie. Anyway, this will be the first time that Irie-kun has helped me with schoolwork without being forced to or blackmailed."

"B-b-blackmail?" sputtered Aoki.

Kotoko winked at him. "My lips are sealed!"


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

"Aihara!"

Startled, Kotoko turned at the shout and immediately took a defensive position as Sudo barreled toward her, waving a tennis racquet.

"S-Sudo-san, what is it?" she managed.

"Aihara, the Tennis Club needs you!" he roared.

"Do you think you can put down the racquet while you talk to me?" she asked timidly.

"What do you mean?" he snarled, leaning over her. "Never mind, I need you to sign up for volunteer hours at the Tennis Club's okonomi-yaki stand for the festival."

"I told you that I am on a leave of absence. I have plans to assist my other club during the festival," she argued.

"What other cl-? Never mind! I don't care about your leave of absence!" His voice turned pleading. "Irie is doing the cooking and I need you to distract him from Matsumoto. Otherwise…"

"I told you that I was finished with that scheme," Kotoko stated firmly. "If you want Matsumoto-san, grow a pair and ask her out on your own. I won't play games like that anymore."

Sudo's jaw appeared in danger of hitting the ground. "Ai-Ai-Aihara! Who do you think you are, saying such a thing to your sempai!? And you still need to work our booth at the festival! We need the prize money for the most attended food stand!"

"Stuff it, sempai!" Kotoko retorted as she stomped away.

* * *

Kotoko sat glumly on a desk in the Anime clubroom. "That Sudo-san!" she complained. "I don't hear from him in weeks and now suddenly he needs me to help him at the festival. I was planning on selling tickets or something to help the 'Racquet Warrior' movie."

She leaned over and picked up the customized racquet off the neighboring table. "Don't worry, I'll be careful with it," she assured the sputtering Nishimura. She gently waved it back and forth. "And furthermore, I feel like there's someone watching me wherever I go." With her eyes on the racquet, Kotoko did not notice knowing glances exchanged by Nishimura, Kato and Aoki. "Probably just my imagination, but the last time I felt like this…" she paused and looked at the ceiling in thought, "…was at the tennis camp." She snapped her fingers and pointed the racquet at them. "And I was right! You were stalking me all the time!"

"Yes, yes," murmured Aoki soothingly, as he patted the air with his hands, "but we're not hiding from you now. We're right beside you."

"So it's not us!" chimed in Kato.

"My precious!" moaned Nishimura.

"Huh?" asked Kotoko. Then, following his gaze, she realized, "Oh, the racquet." She took a closer look at it and waved it gently again. "It feels like a Wii controller. Too bad 'Racquet Warrior' isn't a video game. I bet lots of people would like to play it, especially after watching the movie."

Aoki coughed. "Er, actually, we've been working on a prototype." Seeing Kotoko's delighted face, he hurried to continue. "But it's not at the sophistication level of a Wii or Xbox or Playstation. It's just a computer game using keyboard controls."

"Still, I bet that would be fun to play," Kotoko enthused. "There are times I'd really love to zap Matsumoto-san and Sudo-sempai for real!"

Tanaka suddenly cleared his throat. "I've been thinking about your situation, Kotori-nee. If Sudo-san is really interested in winning the competition for favorite food stand, we might be able to go into partnership with the Tennis Club."

Kotoko gave him a blank look. "Huh?"

With a grin, Tanaka continued, "This is a prime opportunity for a product combination marketing plan."

"Tanaka-kun, what does that mean in plain Japanese?" Kotoko asked.

Tanaka stood and turned to a clean sheet of paper on the large storyboard pad. Taking a marker, he drew a triangle and circle. "Here is 'Racquet Warrior'. There is a lot of positive buzz going on about it. Several other college groups and outside clubs are coming here just to see it. So we anticipate an excellent turn-out. However, we can extend that audience by giving a discount to people who receive a token for eating at the Tennis Club booth." He drew an arrow from the triangle to the circle.

"Hikaru! Question!" Aoki waved his hand in the air. "Why would the Tennis Club go for that? Won't that just increase _our_ attendance?"

"Patience, Take-kun!" He drew an arrow from the circle to the triangle. "Now, in return, if people present the ticket stub from 'Racquet Warrior' to the Tennis Club, they can receive a free drink with the purchase of an order of okonomi-yaki."

"Hmm, it might work," Kato said.

"Not only that, this provides me with a real-life example for my research paper in Advanced Marketing!" he crowed.

Kotoko's bottom lip protruded ever so slightly. "But that's a lot of trouble for a problem caused by me. I'm not really doing anything…" Her head suddenly lifted. "Hey, wait! How about, if they bring another token from the Tennis Club, they can have a photo-op with the real Racquet Warrior—me!"

When no one responded, she protested, "Well, _I_ thought it was a good idea!"

"You know, Kotori-nee, there have already been a lot of pictures of you posted around campus," said Kato.

"Yes, we don't know if you really want that type of attention again," spoke Nishimura.

"Pooh!" Kotoko waved away their concern. "Those were…personal issues. This is for the Anime Club and for 'Racquet Warrior'." She sat up straight suddenly. "Say! Why don't I dress up as Kotorin?"

Dead silence met that question.

"What now?!" she asked.

"Th-that's very unlike you," ventured Yoshida, who had stayed out of the discussion until then. "Every time Kato pulls out that costume, we wonder if blood is going to be spilled."

"Pftt!" Kotoko waved off the comment. "I'm going to make some adop…adaf…changes to the costume to make it more modest. So, Kato-kun! Your time has come! Hand me the swimsuit!"

A few moments later her resultant shriek could be heard through the door. "Did you even _look_ at me when you bought this?! How can you think I wear a 5L?!"

* * *

A/N: American 38D is approximately Japanese 5L size.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Kotoko felt like the only time she was alone was either in her bedroom or in the bath, and she was starting to get jumpy. Not only was there a constant tickling sensation on the back of her neck as if a person was watching her, but for the past week whenever she turned around someone was with her. Most of the time it was Jinko or Satomi—or both—but if it wasn't them, one of the Anime Club members was always outside her classroom door and insisted on walking her to her next class and even escorting her to the train station in the afternoon. Naoki was actually doing it sometimes.

Like right now. Last night after dinner her father commented that she had been missed at the restaurant, so she agreed to visit after school. When she and Yoshida left the club room, Naoki met them nearby and mentioned that he would like to accompany her that evening.

"So Sudo-san let you off the hook for working the food booth?" Naoki inquired.

"Yes, he thought that Tanaka-kun's pro-duct com-bin-a-tion mar-ket-ing plan (whew!) was a good trade-off for working. He said I'd probably trip and set something on fire if I was actually there. So I'll be spending the days with the Anime Club instead."

"Are you going to wear that costume that Kato-san showed us at Tennis Camp?" he teased.

"Well, I'm changing it a little—hey, how did you know which one was Kato-kun?"

For a moment Naoki looked flustered before he recovered. "Ah, I've—uh—seen him around campus and asked how 'Legend of the Racquet Warrior' was coming along."

"Oh, it's almost complete. Plus, Aoki-kun and Tanaka-kun have designed a video game based on the film."

"A video game, eh?" he asked. "What platform does it run on?"

"Huh? They just play it on their laptops. I told them that they ought to make it for the Wii because Nishimura-kun made this cool racquet weapon for me, that is, for Kotorin."

Naoki laughed. "Let's hope that Kotorin's aim is better than yours in tennis."

After swatting his arm for that remark, Kotoko continued. "He's going to add some lighting to the racquet before the festival so it will look more like the video's weapon. I think I'm going to have so much fun!"

"So you like the club I picked out for you?" he asked with a smirk.

"That's right! You know, that was a mean trick, Irie-kun," she scolded. "But it turned out well in the end."

"Looks like it," Naoki smiled at her. "Here's the restaurant. Let me get the door for you." He noticed that she paused and seemed to tense before entering. He gave silent thanks that he had been in the hall the night before at just the right time to overhear the conversation.

"Otosan! I'm here!" she called once they were over the threshold.

"Oh, Little Miss!" said Odawara. "I haven't seen in you in a long time. You're looking well."

"Thank you, and so are you. How is your girlfriend?" Kotoko asked.

"Who was I dating the last time I saw you?" he riposted.

"It was—"

"Kotoko!" Kinnosuke erupted from the kitchen area, arms wide as if to embrace her. Naoki adroitly stepped in front of Kotoko, and Kinnosuke skidded to a stop, the glide of his slippers almost toppling him. "You!" He pointed at Naoki.

"Ikezawa," Naoki said briefly.

"Kin-chan," Kotoko peeked around Naoki's arm. "It's good to see you. How has Otosan been treating you?"

"Your father has been treating him just the way he deserves," Mr. Aihara stated as he too emerged from the kitchen. "Kinnosuke! What are you doing out here? You haven't finished peeling the vegetables I set out!"

"But Boss! I haven't seen Kotoko in—"

"And is that my problem? Back to the kitchen!" Mr. Aihara turned and smiled at the two after Kinnosuke, shooting glares in Naoki's direction, slunk away. "Naoki-kun, I wasn't expecting you."

"I ran into Kotoko as she was headed here and realized that it has been too long since I tasted your cooking. I hope you don't mind that I invited myself," he replied easily.

"Not at all! Not at all! Do you want to order or would you like to have Chef's Choice?"

"Whatever you prepare will be delicious, Aihara-san."

"All right, then. Sit here. Odawara!" he called to his assistant. "Prepare the special hassuns for Kotoko and Naoki-kun!"

"Yes, Boss!"

"So, Kotoko," her father leaned toward her and spoke quietly. "I won't beat around the bush. I've heard there's a new man in your life."

Kotoko jumped. "Otosan! What are you-? Uh, not really…"

"Why are you trying to keep it a secret from your old dad? You know, I saw you with him on Sunday." Kotoko's mouth fell open but no sound came out. Her father continued as a blush rose from her neck to her forehead. "You and he were getting all lovey-dovey in public. You need to take care that you don't do that in private. You're only barely nineteen, you know."

On hearing Naoki's smothered laugh, Aihara turned to him. "At least you, Naoki-kun—whatever your relationship with Kotoko was—had the good sense and manners not to do anything with her in public where people might see."

Kotoko turned and stuck her tongue out at Naoki, whose complexion now rivaled hers.

A slight scuffling sound was heard behind the kitchen curtain. In a moment Kinnosuke appeared with the platters of appetizers, proof that he had won the tug of war. He slammed Naoki's onto the counter, then gently set Kotoko's in front of her.

"Here you go, Kotoko!" he exclaimed before leaning forward to whisper, "Is that bastard Irie bothering you?"

"I'm right here and have perfect hearing," Naoki stated tersely.

"No, Kin-chan…" Kotoko began.

"Boss, I'm sorry," said Odawara, limping out of the kitchen.

"Kinnosuke! What did I tell you?" Mr. Aihara roared.

"But Boss! Between this devil Irie and th-that tennis pervert and that—string bean man, I never get to see Kotoko anymore!" he wailed.

"And if you act like this, I don't wonder why! Back to the kitchen! And don't make me say it a third time!" he pointed with fury.

As Odawara forcibly dragged him out of sight, Kinnosuke cried out, "But I'll get to see you all day, every day, at the Fall Festival! I'm challenging the Tennis Club to an okonomi-yaki cook-off, and I've reserved the spot right next to them! That pervert and that devil won't try anything with Kin-chan around!" The curtain swung closed over the fist he was shaking towards them.

Naoki leaned toward Kotoko with a smile. "Do you think we ought to tell him that you aren't going to be with the Tennis Club?"

She responded by rapidly waving her hand "no".

"Ahem, sorry about that, kids," Mr. Aihara said. "He hasn't been himself lately. I'll get to work on the main course." As he walked away, a crease folded his brow. "String bean?" he thought. "The guy I saw Kotoko with could stand to lose at least ten kilos. Maybe this jealousy has affected his eyesight."


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

"Irie-kun, Matsumoto-san is making faces at me," Kotoko complained.

"How old _are_ you two?" he sighed. "If it bothers you, make faces back."

"Come on," she said as she turned in her chair to face him. "Why are you sitting on the back row with me?"

"It's for the sake of your English pronunciation. Very few of the people that Sensei called on this week had a good accent. I'm not going to let my hard work tutoring you go to waste."

"What are you planning to do?" she asked.

"When a student makes an egregious error, I'll tell you what he or she should have said. That way you'll improve a little more."

"Oh, that makes sense, whatever 'egrujus' means," Kotoko responded. "Does that mean you'll help me if I get called on?"

"Nope," he grinned. "But I'll certainly tell you how you messed up."

"That's what I thought," she muttered. "And you're so _sure_ I'll make a mistake. I hope you get in trouble for talking in class."

Yoshida was waiting for her in the hall after dismissal. "Bye, Irie-kun!" she said, then leaned toward him and whispered, "Now go cool down Matsumoto-san. If she corners me and makes me mad again, I might 'Racquet Warrior' her into the next prefecture."

She skipped down the hall. "Hey there, Yoshida-kun! New shirt?"

Yoshida smiled slightly and smoothed the fabric over his slightly bulging midriff. "Yes. Does it look all right?"

She considered the matter as they walked along. "Hmm, the color's flattering and it's not too tight or too loose. I give it two thumbs up." In typical Kotoko fashion, her books tumbled to the ground as she suited her actions to words. "Sorry, thanks," she apologized as he handed them to her.

"No prob," he replied.

"Yoshida!" Kotoko stopped in the middle of the path. "Are you trying to revamp your image too?"

"Shhh!" He grabbed her arm and got her moving again. "Not so loud! And yes, just a little. Will you help me?"

"Of course I will! I'm Kotorin, the Fashion Guru Onee-chan!"

* * *

"Satomi, I'm _so_ glad you took ballet in middle school. Otherwise, I would have had to search for those tights and leotard on the Internet, and who knows how long they would have taken to arrive."

"No problem, Kotoko. Just don't ask me to plie anytime soon," was Satomi's response as they walked into the seventh shoe store of the day. "By the way, how many pairs of boots are you going to need?"

"Just one." Kotoko scanned through the images she had already taken. "Kato-kun's the one who designed my character, and I'm hoping that by letting him make the final call on the boots he won't be too mad about the costume changes I'm making."

"Did he really think that you would wear only a swimsuit?" queried Satomi. "He didn't give any indication of being that warped when I had lunch with him."

"Oh, he has hidden depths," Kotoko assured her. "All of them do."

"You know, the latest rumor is that you have a real-life shoujo reverse harem," she teased, then yelped as she received a smack on the arm for the remark. "I've heard people comment that you must have snagged several transfer students lately. It seems that the changes haven't registered with some people."

"It's great that they're making good 'first' impressions, but I'd still like them to have more practice." Kotoko sighed loudly. "But the festival is at the end of next week, so there's not much time left."

"I have an idea on that," said Satomi. "If you'll call it quits after this shoe store, I'll tell it to you."

* * *

"All right, Kato-kun. We are down to two maybes and three possibilities. Can you _please_ make a selection?" begged Kotoko.

"Let me see the pictures again," Kato said, reaching for her phone. "Nothing matches exactly…"

"Yes, because you made it up!" she yelled. "That's the whole problem with cosplay—you have to deal with clothing that doesn't exist in the real world!"

"Okay, okay," he handed the mobile back. "This one, then!"

"Mm-hmm, I can drop by there on the way home today," she muttered, then looked up. "Have those two finished their laps already?"

"Yes, their speeds have increased, so they're cleaning up now," he responded. "Do you have any more date sessions for us?"

Kotoko nodded. "I'm working on getting something set up for the weekend. That's really our last chance, isn't it? I'll let you know the details in a few days."

* * *

The rest of the week sped by. Yoshida was glued to the computer doing final clean-up and overlays of "Legend of the Racquet Warrior", Nishimura added flashing lights and an on/off switch to Kotorin's racquet, and Kato completed the revised poster design for outside the festival theatre, adding the Kotorin Photo-Op sessions. Meanwhile, as Kotoko sewed her modified costume, she watched Tanaka and Aoki huddle over Tanaka's laptop and wondered what they were up to.

On Friday the three makeovers brought their clothing charts, as instructed by Kotoko, and she gave them specific orders on what they were to wear on their "Triple Date Plus", as she dubbed it, the next day.

"I'm counting on you to do your best," she concluded. "We meet at 1:00 at Donny's Restaurant. You'll rotate between Satomi, Jinko and me as your primary date partners. At different times my friends Po-chan, Chee-chan and whoever else I can round up will drop by each table, so it will be like speed dating while still in the company of someone you already know."

"Eh, Kotori-nee," interjected Kato with a grin. "Didn't you say that dating all of us at once would be kinky?"

Kotoko snorted. "Once I finished clothes shopping with you guys, you all treated me like a sister and not like a girl to date. Now you almost treat Satomi and Jinko that way, so how would you get any real practice with us? This is the best I can come up with, as we are running out of time. Plus, bring money because you're paying for drinks and appetizers. I had to bribe them since it's so last-minute." She pulled a sheaf of papers from her bag. "Anyway, tomorrow will give you practice on short and long conversations with several types of girls. And here is a list of additional topics you might want to talk about. Memorize them if you know what's good for you!" she commanded while handing out the pages. "I'll see you three tomorrow. Good night, Yoshida-kun! Come on, Nishimura-kun, I promised Mrs. Irie that I'd pick up items from the market on my way home."

After they left, the remaining Anime Club members gathered for a brief meeting. "Let's have a quick update on our progress," Aoki began.

"I'll start," said Kato. "The poster add-ons will be ready Monday morning. Kotori-nee and I will attach them to the posters already on bulletin boards that afternoon. The large theatre posters will be ready by Tuesday at the latest; those will be posted at the entrance of the theatre on Festival Day. Kenji-kun and I will paint the space backdrops on Sunday. We need one for the Kotorin photo op sessions and three for the computer game stations under the tent."

"Have you received the measurements for the backdrops from Pandai?" asked Aoki.

"Yes, they emailed me this afternoon," he replied.

"Also, Pandai will assist with security and tech support for the gaming area, since they are providing the equipment," added Tanaka. "Imagine Irie-san having contacts with a toy manufacturer! If the game garners positive feedback, we could be looking at a future contract."

"Okay," said Aoki, clicking off checkboxes on his phone's list. "Nishimura has finished customizing the prop, Toru is making back-up copies of the video, and Kotori-nee promises that her costume will be ready in time. Is there anything that I'm forgetting?"

"Yo," spoke up Kato. "Have any of you noticed Kotori-nee's stalker while accompanying her?"

"Nothing besides what she herself mentioned, just a vague feeling of someone following us," said Tanaka. "I haven't caught sight of Ikezawa, except when I went to the cafeteria to make sure I'd recognize him."

"Me either."

"Ditto."

Yoshida cleared his throat. "The only time I know that he has gotten near her was last Wednesday. Remember, I told you that Irie-san took over that evening's escort from me. Since she was going to her father's restaurant where Ikezawa works, he preferred to accompany her."

"Well, compared to the rest of us, Irie-san is best able to handle that character," Aoki commented. "But for someone who doesn't want to date her, he sure is going to a lot of trouble."

Kato laughed. "Up until now she has chased him so hard that it became instinctual to run. But once she decided to get involved with us, we have kept her so busy that she has neither time nor energy to pursue him."

"It's a clear case of supply and demand," said Tanaka. "He has less of her, so he wants more."

"Not everything can be boiled down to economics, Hikaru," argued Aoki.

"Right," agreed Yoshida. "It's more like that old movie's song, 'He Grew Accustomed to Her Face,' or something like that."

"At any rate," broke in Kato, "we're an unlikely collection of Cupids. And since we are so inexperienced in love, we shouldn't try to interfere."

"All we can do is try to eliminate obstacles, like Ikezawa," added Yoshida. "Do you think he really is going to be at the festival?"

"We'll find that out next week," said Aoki, standing up to leave. "Well, I don't know about the rest of you guys, but I need my beauty sleep before my 'dates' tomorrow."

* * *

"Onii-chan?"

"Yes, Yuuki?" responded Naoki, lifting his eyes from the book he was reading.

"What would happen if Kotoko fell in love? With someone else, I mean?"

There was a pause before his brother responded. "What do you mean 'what would happen'?"

"Well, Mom has been so set on you and Kotoko getting together that it's kind of scary. Now, even though she's spending her days chasing Kotoko, she still isn't back to her usual self. When she finds out anything, she normally can't wait to share it."

Naoki smiled to himself. "If she has been as dedicated as she usually is, she's probably confused right now, Yuuki."

"I bet she's wondering what she sees in him, compared to you," he muttered.

"What was that?"

"Never mind." He closed the door and returned to his room, and Naoki shook his head absently before returning his attention to the printed page.

Yuuki flopped onto his bed, eyes staring at the ceiling. "And I'm wondering what you're doing too," he said to himself. "Baka Kotoko."

* * *

Mrs. Irie's mouse clicked away as she scanned through the slideshow of photos that she had taken over the past few weeks. "Kotoko-chan, I do not understand you. Have you forgotten Onii-chan so quickly? Or are these rebound dates to heal your broken heart? What _are_ you doing?!"

* * *

A/N: Please indulge me while I share my personal analysis of Naoki. At the beginning of Itazura na kiss, he is emotionally on the same level as his younger brother, which makes sense of a lot of his thoughtless words and actions. Due to a combination of the early cross-dressing trauma and his ability to coast through school without exerting himself, he doesn't care to expend energy developing relationships beyond those with family members. All of this changes when he encounters Kotoko, who demands attention, both consciously and unconsciously. This is most evident in the original story, which I used as my primary resource, as I am not completely pleased with any of his characterizations in video adaptations, whether anime or live action (and they're working on another!) If Kotoko had moved into the house without giving him the letter and if his mother had stayed out of the situation (counterproductive, much?), my belief is that their relationship would have developed along more conventional teenage hormonal lines. My story puts a degree of separation between the two, which allows for serious contemplation of their troubled history by both of them.


	22. Chapter 22

A/N: Very brief. Sorry, folks!

 **Chapter 22**

While Donny's waiters cleared away the plates and utensils from the "dating" tables, the six remaining young people sat at a new larger table to analyze the results of the experience.

"Kato-kun," Kotoko pointed her pompom pen at him, "you need to work on smiling more naturally. You did well in the conversations though."

"Yes," Satomi added. "Po-chan visited your table three times. I think she may be interested, as she broke up with her boyfriend when he decided to go to a trade school in Kyoto."

"But your hair is wilting," Jinko observed. "You need to use the next strength of styling gel to keep it looking good. Now Tanaka, here, you were popular."

"Wh-what?" he sputtered.

"Ruri-chan talked with you the longest of any of the others," commented Kotoko.

"And Chee-chan told me that she thinks you're cute," added Jinko.

"You changed subjects too abruptly," said Satomi. "I could tell that you were just going down the list of subjects we made for you. Try to ease into a change of topic."

"Aoki-kun, you need to practice looking people in the eye and speaking a little louder," Kotoko noted.

"And don't fidget," put in Jinko.

Satomi considered him with hand on her chin. "It's too bad that your new glasses frames weren't ready. Even so, Emi-chan was sneaking looks at you."

"But she didn't say much—to _anyone_ ," protested Kotoko.

"Chiyo dragged her here because she didn't want to come alone," Jinko informed them.

"So the fact that she spoke at all is positive, as shy as she is," noted Satomi.

Kotoko placed her pen and notebook on the table and beamed at the three men. "Overall, I think today was a great success. I believe you will be comfortable talking to women at the festival, don't you?"

Faced with her incredible optimism, the only thing left for them to do was nod.

"Hey, did you hear that they have a Miss Tonan Festival Queen competition?" asked Jinko.

"Yes," said Satomi. "Only the men are allowed to vote for her during the festival."

"That's so bogus!" interrupted Jinko.

"They announce the winner and runners-up on the last day," continued Satomi.

"Hmph!" pouted Kotoko. "I bet Matsumoto-san will be among the finalists since she is both beautiful and smart. Sudo-sempai will probably make all the tennis players campaign and vote for her."

"Well, you are the star—kinda—of a movie that will be shown all three days. That's great publicity for your candidacy, isn't it guys?" Jinko turned to the men.

"S-sure," said Kato. "We could encourage them to vote for her at each movie showing. And the advertising posters have been up for several weeks now."

"Mr. Tonan will also be crowned at the festival," put in Aoki. "But there's no voting on that one."

"Sorry, ladies," Kato grinned. "The Miss Tonan winner gets to choose who her king is."

"So who would you pick?" Satomi teased Kotoko. "Irie-kun? Oh, I forgot, you've left him behind. Kin-chan?"

"Maybe that mustache man from the tennis club," chimed in Jinko.

"Nonsense," said Kotoko. "I'm just a first year, so there's no way enough people would know me."

"Oh, they know you, all right! So, what if?" Both Jinko and Satomi leaned in toward her. "You can tell us."

Kotoko looked across the table at the three men who were following their conversation. "I wouldn't choose a king," she declared. "I would choose—the Three Smashketeers!"

"Who?!" Satomi and Jinko chorused.

Their eyes followed Kotoko's gesture at the men across the table, whose complexions were now the color of boiled octopus. "Why settle for one king when I can have three princes?" asked Kotoko with a smirk.

"Wow, Kotoko," Jinko sighed. "You must _love_ being the topic of conversation."


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

"What an interesting...angle," Naoki said in the doorway to Kotoko's room.

"It's not fair that Irie-kun is as handsome upside-down as right-side up," she thought. Of course, he wasn't the one who was inverted. Kotoko was bent over, trying to shove her heel into her boot, so she was viewing him between her knees.

One final push and "There!" she exclaimed and stood upright suddenly. Vertigo hit her and Naoki caught her as she swayed.

"How many times does this make that I have either caught you or had to pick you up?" he teased while steadying her. "So, is this the famous 'Racquet Warrior' costume?"

"Yes," she answered, smoothing the leotard over her midriff while checking out the other details in the mirror. "I still have to decorate the gloves, but it's almost finished!"

"I seem to recall that there were just two items of clothing in the original costume," Naoki commented, watching her.

"As if I would wear only that!" she scoffed. "This skirt's at least as long as my tennis outfits, so I feel a little more covered up."

"I hate to mention it, but the top part doesn't look like it fits well," he said, gesturing vaguely in that direction.

"That Kato! It was way too big for me. I took it in on the sides, but I'm not skillful enough to alter the front. Satomi suggested stuffing it with toilet paper—what do you think?" Kotoko asked innocently, as she held the loose fabric away from the flesh-colored leotard.

Naoki's hand covered his mouth to make his laugh-turned-cough more believable. His eyes moved sideways, seeking a distraction, and focused on a mutilated item on her desk. "What is that scene of carnage?" he asked.

"This?" she walked over to it. "This is a stuffed duck—or was. Aflac!" she squawked, waving it in his direction.

He took it from her. "Why is it wingless?"

"Oh! The headpiece!" Kotoko turned and picked up a headband with—yes!—duck wings attached. "This is part of the costume as well." She moved to the mirror and set it in place.

Naoki turned the duck over in his hands. "I have a 'fowl' suggestion. Instead of wasting perfectly good toilet paper, why don't you use this poor bird's innards to fill out your costume?" he asked.

"What a great idea!" she exclaimed, taking it from him. "Ow!"she cried, placing a finger in her mouth.

"What happened?" Naoki pulled her hand away, careful to avoid the injured finger.

"I burned myself on the glue gun when I made the headpiece," she admitted sheepishly.

He shook his head at her. "And now the blister has broken." He rapped her forehead. "Don't put wounds in your mouth! Do you have a first aid kit in the bathroom?"

At her nod Naoki guided her in and seated her on the toilet. He knelt as he gently washed and dried the injury before applying ointment. He sighed at the bandage containers. "Teddy bear or unicorn?" he asked.

"Teddy bear, please," Kotoko answered in a small voice.

"Here you go then." In a mock stern voice he added, "Now take care that you don't bump it again, okay?" Still holding her hand, he brought it to his face and touched his lips to the bandage.

The two froze for a moment, then Naoki stood quickly and returned to the bedroom and picked up the duck. "Let's see what you have inside. Do you have a scalpel, nurse?" he grinned at Kotoko.

She laughed and handed him her sewing scissors. "These will have to do, Dr. Irie."

Once the seam was open he began pulling out fluffy polyester. When he had a handful he hefted it, looked at Kotoko's chest, then pulled out a little more before giving it to her. "Try this."

Kotoko squashed and arranged the stuffing until she was satisfied. "That's just the right amount, Irie-kun! Let me have some for the other side."

Once he complied he stood watching for several minutes as she tried to balance the shapes. "You know, Kotoko, I'm no sewing expert, but I think you should encase the padding in material and then stitch it to the inside of your costume."

She looked up at him, both hands still pushing stuffing around. "Eh? Why?"

Naoki exhaled loudly then lifted away her hands. "The fibers are sticking out from the edges, making it obvious that your—ah—assets are not natural." He began tucking and rearranging while he talked. "Also, you wouldn't have the shifting problem that you are experie—"

"Onii-chan, I've been waiting! Is Kotoko going to walk Chibi with…Wh-wh-wha-!?" Yuuki's voice rose to an even higher soprano than usual as he caught sight of them and froze, pointing.

Naoki stared at him for a moment then realized the cause of his brother's distress and moved his hands away. "I was just helping Kotoko with her costume…" He trailed off as he saw _that_ explanation wasn't helping matters.

Oblivious, Kotoko answered his original question blithely. "Ah, no, Yuuki-kun. I'm not dressed for outside. What do you think of my costume?" She took over Naoki's adjusting task as she spoke. "Irie-kun, that was a good idea you had. These things won't stay still! Anyway, you two go without me!"

The two boys left the room and Yuuki shot her a wild-eyed look before almost slamming the door behind him. She tilted her head and stared at it. "What's gotten into him?"


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

"Kato-kun, weren't there more posters on the bulletin boards earlier?" Kotoko asked as they walked to her first class the next morning.

"Yes," he frowned. "And it looks like they are only targeting us. All of the other club notices are in place." Shrugging, he added, "Luckily we have extras, plus I can print out some smaller signs if we need them. We'll replace the missing ones this afternoon."

"I wonder what happened to them," Kotoko mused.

* * *

Naoki closed his eyes and sighed, making an effort to ignore the spectacle in front of him. "I'll have lunch set A," he told the female cafeteria worker.

"Coming right up," she replied.

"Hey, Mr. Genius!" Kinnosuke leaned over from his station. "Aren't these posters of Kotoko great?" He gestured to the Anime Club advertisements that festooned the front of the counter and the wall above the opening. He scowled at Naoki. "You didn't take one, did you?"

Ignoring his better nature, he responded, "No, I don't really need one. I already see her roaming around the house wearing only a towel. Plus," he leaned forward and confided with a smirk, "yesterday I helped her get _into_ that costume."

Naoki obtained his lunch and walked away, leaving the howl of pain and furious invective to the unlucky people behind him in line.

* * *

"Aoki, it's a smart camera. We won't need to swap out storage cards to print the pictures."

"How does that work, Nishimura?" he asked.

"The image is sent via wifi to the computer, and someone edits and prints it there. Fill up the club's laser printer with photo paper, and we'll be in business."

"So, Kenji-kun, that means we might need two club members in addition to Kotori-nee at the photo op area. Aren't we spreading ourselves thin?" asked Kato.

Just then the door opened. "Hello, everyone!" called Kotoko. "Look who Tanaka-kun and I ran into!" She pulled a girl even shorter and slighter than herself into the room. "You two remember Emi-chan from last Saturday, don't you?"

Aoki and Kato called out "Hello", and the short-haired girl bowed in greeting, glancing shyly at each of them in turn.

Kotoko quickly introduced the other two then added, "Emi-chan is in the Photography Club and all they're doing for the festival is an exhibit of pictures they've taken. She doesn't have much of anything to do, so I invited her to come see us."

"Is that the latest Samsung smart model?" Emi suddenly asked, indicating the camera mounted on the tripod.

"Yes," Aoki answered, surprising them with his boldness. "Nishimura was explaining how we will print the image from this computer."

"What editing program are you using? Ah, I see!" Before the rest of them knew it, the two heads were together discussing exposure, filters and overlay icons.

Kotoko bounced on her feet as she turned to the others. "I'm so excited. I'm going to feel like a movie star having my picture taken so many times. Do you think I ought to use a special pose?" she asked, tilting her head at a quizzical angle.

"Hmm," murmured Kato. "Not a bad idea. Let's see…"

Tanaka spoke up. "Spread your legs apart. Farther," he added as Kotoko complied. "Now point your toes inward and bend your knees."

"Like this?" she asked, arms spread to her sides for balance.

Yoshida started snickering as Kato began adding suggestions. "Your right arm should be straight down, fingers spread and with your palm facing backwards."

"Now lower your left shoulder and hold your left hand in front of your face like a fan," continued Tanaka.

"Guys, are you sure this is right?" asked a tottering Kotoko. "Kotorin doesn't do anything like this in the movie!"

Emi looked up to see what the ruckus was about. "Is that a JoJo pose?" she asked.

Kato and Tanaka started laughing which caused Kotoko to cry, "Were you teasing me? Meanies!" She began mock beating them with her fists. Meanwhile, Aoki picked his jaw up from the floor and asked, "D-do you follow Araki Hirohiko?"

"Yes, I love how he creates artistic style instead of mimicking it. I especially enjoyed Part Seven."

"'Steel Ball Run'? Yes, that was highly imaginative. My personal favorite is Part 4."

"Oh, but Josuke's hair!"

The rest of the club was now staring at the two, eyes moving back and forth as if seated at Wimbledon. Kotoko interrupted the conversation by suddenly clapping her hands and shouting, "I know! Emi-chan should join the Anime Club!"

"That's an excellent idea," stated Kato. "Weren't we just talking about how stretched we were? With her skills, she would be a great asset at the photography station."

"I don't know," Emi demurred.

"Please, Emi-cha-a-an!" Kotoko clasped her friend's hands. "Be my photographer. It will be fun!"

Kato and Tanaka leaned toward Aoki. "Encourage her!" Kato whispered.

"An extra person just might dissuade Ikezawa from approaching Kotori-nee," added Tanaka.

"Remember, she's going to be out in the open, wearing the Kotorin costume."

"Plus an additional cute girl can only help advertise our exhibit!"

"Emi-chan!" Aoki burst out suddenly. "C-could you possibly assist us?" She tilted her head to the side inquisitively. "W-we have several activities with our exhibit and could use extra people."

"You can have fun playing with our new camera," tempted Kato.

"I'm sure you would be the best at enhancing and embellishing the photos," Nishimura called over.

"We need help deciding which photo paper to purchase," remarked Aoki.

"Plus," added Tanaka, "You can have input on how much to charge for the Kotorin photographs."

After Emi nodded in acceptance, Aoki's stammered "Thanks!" was interrupted by Kotoko. "Hey! Aren't my pictures free with a Tennis Club token?"

"Yes, they are," Kato reassured her, "but what if someone wants a picture yet doesn't want to buy more food? We can't deprive him—or her—of a wonderful Fall Festival souvenir, can we?"

"Right," she agreed. "So, Emi-chan, how much am I worth?"

* * *

A/N: If you want to see what the makeovers might have resulted in, please check out my DeviantArt page (look for user displacedtexan1994). I can't draw manga, so these are traditional pencil portrait-type drawings. Sorry that my skills are a little rusty!


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

By the time Kotoko and Emi arrived at the Anime Club's theatre site on Thursday, the location had been largely transformed. A bare PVC pipe framework wobbled to the left of the entrance, and a large tent with the Pandai logo had been set up on the right. Members of the club and people wearing Pandai polo shirts were measuring and marking the ground with colorful masking tape.

"What's going on?" Kotoko asked, as she and Emi stood a little outside the tent.

"Kotori-nee, Emi-chan," Tanaka nodded at them. "We're marking power outlet locations for the game consoles. Irie-san's father is interested in our game, so we're using the festival to collect early market feedback."

Kotoko squealed and jumped forward to embrace Tanaka enthusiastically. "Tanaka-kun, how wonderful! And no one said anything to me! Irie-kun either!"

He grinned and rubbed the back of his neck self-consciously. "It didn't all come together until last week, and then it was so rushed that we didn't want to give you anything else to worry about. Take-kun and I are excited because it could be a big break for us if it goes well."

"Of course it will!" She slapped his arm playfully, then indicated the pipes opposite them. "Is that the photo area?"

"Yes." Tanaka took both girls by the arm and escorted them over. "The backdrop will be attached to that frame, and the editing computer and printer will be set on a counter that has yet to arrive."

"Is that framework stable enough?" asked Emi with concern. "If we have any wind, the fabric will act as a sail and everything will go flying."

"We noticed that—ah! Here is the solution." Tanaka hurried to take a heavy rectangle from Kato, who had just arrived with two men in sports attire, both carrying multiples of the same item. The men laid the weights on the frame base, which slowly stilled its swaying motion.

"Excellent!" Kotoko clapped her hands. "Now it won't fall over and bonk me on the head."

Emi viewed the items curiously. "Are those from a weight machine?" she asked the newcomers.

"Yes, the college just received a replacement and hasn't yet disposed of the old one," replied one.

"We're happy to help another club, especially one with such beautiful members," smiled the other widely.

The first one smacked him on the back of the head. "Stop acting swarmy," he commanded. "I'm Iwaya Daichi and he's Sukenari Isao. We're from the Kendo Club and would be honored if you would attend one of our demonstrations during the festival." He bowed to them.

"Of course!" replied Kotoko. "And you must come watch the Anime Club's movie!"

"Free admission, of course," put in Kato.

"Glad to," Sukenari winked, "as long as these two lovely ladies will be here."

Iwaya grabbed his arm and dragged him away. "Come along, Romeo. That comment has earned you extra practice today."

"Sempai!" he howled.

As the two kendo members left, they passed Aoki toting the camera and tripod. After greeting the girls, he and Emi set up the tripod then called Kotoko over.

"Kotori-nee, we need to take a practice shot. Come and stand there!" commanded Aoki.

Kotoko complied and stood smiling. "If I make sure that the framework is not in the viewfinder when I zoom in, it should be all right," muttered Emi, adjusting the camera controls.

"Wait!" said Aoki. "She won't be the only one in the pictures. We need a stand-in. Kato!" he called.

As the two stood side by side, Aoki and Emi looked at each other. "All Hanshin Kyojin!" they exclaimed together.

"Whaaat?!" Kotoko leaned forward in mock anger.

"It's nothing, Kotoko-chan," laughed Emi. "But I think you're going to need a stool for some of your photo-ops."

"Especially if we want any of Kotorin's costume to show in the pictures!" chuckled Aoki.


	26. Chapter 26

A/N: As we near this story's climax, let's summarize the situation:

Matsumoto and Kinnosuke think that Kotoko is dating Kato.

Yuuki believes that she is seeing Tanaka.

Mr. Irie and Mr. Aihara are convinced that she and Aoki are an item.

And poor Mrs. Irie isn't sure what the heck is going on.

But, is there yet another suitor waiting in the wings?

 **Chapter 26**

Tonan Fall Festival: Friday, Day One

"The dynamics of that couple have changed over the past few weeks," Kato mused out loud.

"Eh, Toshi?" asked Nishimura absently, glancing up from tying the photo backdrop to the frame.

"Over there." He looked where indicated and saw Naoki hand a large bag to Kotoko before heading toward the food vendor area.

"Hmm. Yes. Although there was a softening even earlier. Remember how he carried her off the tennis court after that doubles match?"

"Are you talking about Irie-san and Kotori-nee?" asked Tanaka, wandering over from the tent with Yoshida.

Kato nodded at the two members. "Would you say the pairing is sort of Han/Leia-like?" he queried.

"Nah," replied Nishimura, "definitely Gray/Juvia, with a touch of Doctor/Rose."

"How about Spock/Uhura?" suggested Tanaka.

"Denied," declared Nishimura. "I'll never accept the reboot as canon. What about you, Yoshida?"

"I'm thinking more Shakespearean, although I can't pinpoint the play," he mused. "One of the comedies, I think."

"If the college allowed you to read it in the original Klingon, you'd probably remember it," Kato joked.

* * *

"Hey, Kotoko, Emi-chan!" Satomi called out as she and Jinko approached the Anime Club site, waving cups. "We brought refreshments!"

"Kakigori!" Kotoko bounced over. "Where did you get it?"

"The Ski Club is selling it. Snow, ice, get it?" cracked Jinko.

"You're life savers," Emi added. "This is the first slow time we've had in a while. All the showings so far have sold out, and once the movie's over we're swamped taking pictures. We're actually selling more than we're giving away with tokens."

Jinko stared at Emi's head. "Nice cat ears, Emi-chan. Do you have a tail, too?"

Emi flushed as she touched the headband she was wearing. "Yes, but I had to take it off. It knocked into the tripod, and the camera almost fell over. Luckily Aoki-san caught it in time." She sat down with the other three girls on the bench opposite the exhibit.

Kotoko laughed as she licked melon syrup off her lips. "Not only that, but he caught Emi-chan as well! She lost her balance when the tail hit. It looked more like something I would do!"

"Aoki-san was just trying to save the camera, I'm sure!" Emi protested.

"Keep telling yourself that, Emi-chan," consoled Satomi, patting her leg. "Say, what's with the Pandai tent?"

"Oh, that's where you can test out a video game based on the anime. Ojisama's—that is, Irie-san's—company brought computers and they are seeing if it might be a good seller for them."

"Hmm," said Jinko, standing up. "Is that Ruri-chan in there? There's a vacant spot next to her, so I'm going to check out your game, Kotoko."

"Better hurry," urged Emi. "The movie will be over shortly!" She no sooner said that than the door began to open. "Let's go, Kotoko-chan!"

The next few minutes were busy. Emi took photographs as Kotoko smiled in front of the starry backdrop, holding her customized racquet at various angles. Aoki soon emerged from the theatre to help print the pictures. Even Satomi pitched in, taking money or Tennis Club tokens and keeping order in the line. At one point Kotoko noticed Aoki wave Tanaka over from the tent. The two began talking with a trio of young men who reminded her of the Anime Club members the first time she met them.

"Kotoko! Attention!" Emi's voice brought her back to her assignment.

She gave a wide conciliatory smile to the young man waiting in front of her. He grinned in return while they arranged their pose, and for the umpteenth time that day, she needed the stool. Waving him off, she thought how friendly and nice-looking he was and wondered if he was a fellow student. From the corner of her eye she saw movement in the bushes across the way, so between customers she leaned over to observe more closely.

"Emi-chan! Satomi! Do you see anything over there?" Kotoko asked once business slowed down.

They peered also. "No, what did you think it was?" asked Emi.

"I don't know. It kind of looked like…Kin-chan," Kotoko admitted.

Satomi waved it off. "No, Jinko and I saw him when we stopped by the okonomi-yaki stands for lunch. That was shortly before we headed this way."

"How's the competition going?" Kotoko asked.

"It's rather one-sided," she answered.

"Yeah," Jinko added as she rejoined them. "Everyone was lining up to have food cooked by Irie-kun. We felt sorry for Kin-chan so we bought ours from him. He almost cried, he was so grateful."

"Too bad," said Kotoko sadly.

"We have to get back now," stated Satomi. "We'll check on him and also let Irie-kun know you're holding up all right. He asked about you when we were over there."

"Tell him I should be ready to leave around six," Kotoko requested.

"Will do!" As the girls left, Kotoko looked at the bushes again.

"I swear, something is over there!" she declared. She turned to see Aoki and Tanaka flanking her, eyes also on the shrubbery. "You need something, guys?"

"Ah, Kotori-nee, we've had a request from another college's anime club," began Aoki.

"We'd like to talk with you after the next showing," Tanaka added.

* * *

"So, Irie-kun, members of the Anime Club at Nerima College saw Emi-chan and me—oh, Satomi and Jinko were there too—at the club booth and want me to help them change their image also. I was so surprised that I just told Tanaka-kun and Aoki-kun I would think about it, but I'm not sure how to answer them." She sighed. "Anyway! Did the Tennis Club sell a lot of okonomi-yaki today? Satomi and Jinko said that Kin-chan wasn't doing so well."

Naoki frowned. "He would have done better if he had actually stayed at his station. Every time I looked up, he was off wandering around somewhere. Even though we took in more money without him there, it made extra work for us."

"Hmm. Maybe that _was_ Kin-chan I saw…"

"Did he approach you?" he asked sharply.

"Approach me?" she blinked. "What a strange way of saying it. No, I just thought I saw someone watching from the bushes across the sidewalk. But I didn't get a chance to go over."

"If there is something suspicious," Naoki chided, "let the men of the club handle it. With all the visitors during the festival days, you never know who could be dangerous."

"Ri-i-i-ght," she answered, giving him a sideways look.

"I have an idea about the request from Nerima College," he suddenly said. "Let me show you when we get home and cleaned up. I don't know about you, but I reek from all the work I did today!"


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

Tonan Fall Festival: Saturday, Day Two

"Go to the web address on the card and fill in your information. Be sure to upload full-length photos and head closeups." For the sixth time that morning Kotoko smiled brightly as she recited her memorized script. She pressed a card into the hand of a grateful looking young man. "There's no charge if you just want clothing and grooming suggestions. There's a slight fee if you want me to shop with you, and at least one member of the Tonan Anime Club must vouch for you. I'll also have to fit it in with my school schedule, so it might take a while if you choose that."

As he backed away, bowing, Kotoko waved while speaking to Tanaka out of the corner of her mouth. "Is that all of them for now?"

"I believe so," he chuckled. "Were we that tongue-tied when we met you?"

Kotoko sighed. Many of the visiting members had been unable to speak in her presence or even look her in the eye. None were brave enough to approach her themselves, so one of the Anime Club members had to escort them to her. "Not quite. As I recall, you egged each other on."

"I'm impressed with your response to their request," Tanaka commented, turning over one of the cards featuring a small printed image of Racquet Warrior Kotorin. "Did you set up this online registration form yourself?"

"Mostly," she laughed. "Irie-kun started it but made me do nearly all of it myself. He also showed me how to print the business cards, but I'm the one who came up with the name 'Kotorin's Magical Makeovers'." She frowned. "I first wanted to call it 'Professional Makeover Sessions' but he said something about the acronym not working well."

Tanaka snorted. "He has a good head for business."

Kotoko sighed. "I don't think he's really interested in business, at least taking over his father's business. But he _is_ helping me out. He reminded me that I told him college is the place where you discover what you want to be. He said if I really enjoyed what I did with you guys that I ought to inver…invest…look into it. Maybe see if there are some courses here that could help."

"Mmm. I'd say perhaps fashion design plus some basic business courses would be worth considering. I'll be happy to assist you with that once the festival is over," Tanaka offered.

"Thanks!" she smiled at him.

"But when will the girls be back with our lunch?" he asked when he heard a familiar rumbling from the direction of Kotoko's midsection.

"I was expecting them by now," Kotoko replied. "I wonder what's keeping…Oh, there they are!"

Emi (today sporting fox ears) hurried up with Jinko, Satomi, and Chee, each carrying bags and drinks. "Kotoko, I hope you are hungry!" she called out with a laugh.

"I'm always hungry," she responded, "but isn't this too much food?"

"It all started when I went to the Tennis Club booth to tell Irie-kun that your business cards were a big hit—like you asked me to."

Jinko broke in. "Then Kin-chan got all in her face about how she shouldn't encourage Irie-kun to talk with you—as if you couldn't get avoid that, living in the same house!"

"Irie-kun just ignored him and asked if she was there for lunch," added Satomi.

"When I said I had come to get lunch for all of you, Irie-kun made it himself and didn't charge us anything!" said Emi.

"Then Kin-chan exploded—again—and insisted that he was the only okonomi-yaki expert because he is from Kansai," Satomi continued.

"And he made us all duplicate lunches!" exclaimed Chee.

"Yum!" said Kotoko. "Let's sit on the bench and eat!"

Tanaka and Chee chose to take their food inside the building, so the remaining girls once more took possession of the bench. The bushes behind it rustled as they divvied up plates, napkins and chopsticks. "Are there squirrels back there?" asked Satomi, turning around.

"Must be huge ones," replied Jinko around a mouthful of food.

"Noisy, too," added Emi, as a low moan was heard.

There was no comment from Kotoko, who was busy making inroads on her okonomi-yaki.


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

Tonan Fall Festival: Sunday, Day Three, Part One

"Must you bring every camera in your arsenal?" Naoki asked his mother through gritted teeth as assorted Iries and one Aihara walked into the Tennis Club booth mid-afternoon.

"Don't be such a party pooper!" His mother chided him as her camera clicked several times in succession. She craned her neck in all directions. "Where is Kotoko-chan?"

"Hello, Mrs. Irie!" Matsumoto glided over to greet Naoki's family. "Are you here to experience Tonan Fall Festival today?"

"Obviously," Naoki muttered under his breath.

Mrs. Irie raised her chin. "Yes, I am so excited that Kotoko-chan and Naoki-kun are celebrating together! Where is she?"

Matsumoto smiled. "Don't you know? Aihara-san isn't helping out the Tennis Club. She has abandoned us for her other club…and her other man!"

"You lie!" Mrs. Irie glared at her.

"No, I don't. She has a perfectly comical looking man that she is seeing now." Mr. Irie, Mr. Aihara, and Yuuki nodded in unison at that statement, and Kinnosuke, leaning sideways towards the Tennis Club booth, hollered, "Boss, that's what I told you!"

"Tha-that's just a-a passing fancy!" sputtered Mrs. Irie. "My son and Kotoko-chan are exTREMEly devoted to each other! They're just going through a rough patch right now. Soon everything will be resolved and that person will be nothing more than a distant memory. Mark my words!"

"Oh, I disagree! It's much more serious than that. He's so possessive, I'm quite carried away. Not only does he walk her to class every morning, but he has his equally awkward friends guard her when he's not around."

Mrs. Irie was so infuriated that her hair started quivering. "That is a load of—"

"But if you're worried about your son, you needn't be," Matsumoto continued smoothly. "With me around, Irie-kun is less than devastated."

"Go ahead. Talk about me as if I'm not here," Naoki spoke to the tent's roof, since none of its occupants were paying him any mind.

"As if he would be interested in a calculating little minx such as you!" Mrs. Irie stood with hands on her hips.

"Unlike the simpering idiot that you prefer, at least I am his equal in looks _and_ intelligence!" countered Matsumoto.

"I will never give my approval—"

"If you're not going to order anything, would you please get out of the way?!" roared Naoki. His mother stood frozen, her finger still pointed in the air in a commanding fashion. "And Kotoko can be found at the Anime Club booth, as can your computers and employees, Father. Turn right and go 100 meters."

As the family members moved away, he let out a sigh when his mother aimed her camera at him for a few last shots before berating her husband. "What does he mean? Computers? Employees? Are you supporting Onii-chan's rivals?!"

* * *

"Welcome!" Kotoko jumped and waved as her family approached. "You've come to see us!" She pulled Kato and Po, who were on duty with her, towards the group. "Obasama, Ojisama, Otosan, Yuuki-chan, may I present my friends Aizawa Hana and Kato Toshiyuki from the Anime Club." She turned. "Po-chan, Kato-kun, here are my father Aihara Shigeo, Irie Noriko, Irie Shigeki, and Irie Yuuki. Po-chan graduated with me from Tonan High and Kato-kun designed the Kotorin character for the anime and the video game. "

"Kato- _kun_?" Mrs. Irie peered at him closely and startled him by taking a picture suddenly.

"Ah, uh, yes," he stammered, "Kotori-nee has been a great addition to our club. We don't know what we'd do without her."

Now it was Mr. Aihara who examined him intently. "Kotori- _nee_?" he asked. Then he muttered to himself, "String bean?!"

"You're in luck," Kato said. "The movie will be starting in a few minutes. I'll make sure you all get good seats."

"I don't want to see any movie starring that baka," grumbled Yuuki. "I'd rather play the video game."

"Well, you can do that," said Tanaka, walking up to the group, "but I have to warn you that the game stars Kotori-nee also." Ignoring Yuuki's steady stare at his streaked hair, he proceeded to re-introduce himself to Mr. Irie and bow to the others as Kotoko named them.

"Kotori-nee, again?" murmured Mr. Aihara while Mrs. Irie snapped a quick picture of the newcomer.

Emi and Aoki exited the theatre building at that time and came over. Mr. Irie's and Mr. Aihara's eyes widened and they began elbowing each other and whispering, "It's him!" to each other.

"How is our stock of photo paper holding up, Kato? Oh, pardon me, Irie-sama," as Aoki bowed to Mr. Irie. "Perhaps you remember me, Aoki Takeshi?"

"Ah, yes, I thought you looked familiar when we met at Pandai," Mr. Irie managed.

Aoki's eyebrows flew up briefly in question as introductions began again. Meanwhile, Kotoko counted the printer sheets and Kato made some quick calculations.

"Aoki, we will definitely run out after this showing. Should we purchase some more?" he asked.

The club president thought a moment then answered, "No, we'll stop the photo-ops once we run out. Kotori-nee, you can enjoy the festival after that, but make sure to return before the pageant."

Because Kotoko squealed so loudly and began jumping up and down, no one noticed that Mrs. Irie's camera was again clicking away.

"Kotoko-chan!" Mrs. Irie called out. "Have you been posing for pictures all three days?"

"Yes," she laughed. "And I have smiled and been hugged hundreds of times."

"The best shots were with that flirty kendo dude. They pretended to be dueling with his sword and her racquet," Emi chimed in.

"That was fun," Kotoko smiled.

"Too bad you burst his bubble by refusing to go out with him!"

"How popular you must be!" Mrs. Irie gushed with hands clasped in front of her. "Have you taken a picture with my son yet?"

"No, ah, Irie-kun is busy with the Tennis Club booth and hasn't been wandering around," Kotoko told his mother.

"Busy—hmph! They are just taking advantage of him and his culinary talent! I think it is a plot of that vixen with hair extensions to keep him from you!" Mrs. Irie observed.

"I don't think Matsumoto-san has hair—" Kotoko began.

"Yes, Kotoko-chan has been very popular," Emi spoke up. "How many people from Nerima College have signed up on your website?"

"Seven," Kotoko mumbled, "and two from Chiyoda, plus four more from our college. I am going to be _so_ busy next term."

"Even more exciting, some students returned for extra photos with her, and several have even asked for her autograph on the photo."

"How thrilling!" Mrs. Irie noted. "Just like a celebrity! Yuuki-kun, why don't you take a picture with Kotoko-chan and have her sign it for you?"

"Won't do it," he sulked. "I don't wanna take a picture with a baka who couldn't write her own name in kanji until high school." He stuck out his tongue and pulled his eyelid down before stomping off to the computers. Tanaka, with a shrug and a smile, followed him.

"Not true!" Kotoko called after him. "It was middle school!"


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29**

Tonan Fall Festival: Sunday, Day Three, Part Two

"I feel bad for Tanaka-kun having to put up with Yuuki-kun's rudeness. He's usually only that bad with me," Kotoko commented to Emi as they looked over at the Pandai tent.

"He'll be fine," she replied. "It will keep him on his toes."

"Good practice for him. Is it Chee-chan or Ruri-chan today?"

Emi giggled. "I haven't seen either. What if they both show up?"

"It would serve that player right," Kotoko snorted. "Who would have predicted that Tanaka-kun would become a chick magnet? Say, how much longer until the movie's over?"

"Less than five minutes," she answered. "Plus, we are down to our last two photo sheets. You're almost free!"

"Then I'll take both of them!" exclaimed the young man who just arrived at the counter.

"Really?" asked Kotoko as he handed money to Emi. "Wait, haven't you been here before?"

He smiled and clasped her hand. "Yes, I've come every day. You'll need the stool with me," he reminded her.

"That's right!" she laughed.

As Emi moved from the camera to the laptop to edit the shots, he helped Kotoko step down and remarked, "You don't remember me, do you?"

"Yes, I do," she said, confused. "Didn't I just say so?"

"No," he touched her nose playfully, "we went to the same high school."

"Honestly?!" she gasped.

"Of course, I'm a year behind, so I'm still attending there. When I was younger I looked up to Irie-san and wanted to be just like him. I was always watching him, and that's how I noticed you."

"Oh!" Kotoko's hands covered her suddenly flushed cheeks, as she recalled certain high school events.

"You were so persistent in your pursuit of Irie-san, no matter how many times he rejected you." He smiled as he tugged her hands down and retained possession of them. "That's what made me admire and like you." He leaned forward in a confiding manner. "I'll be attending college here next year. Why don't you stop wasting your time chasing after that cold guy and enjoy college life with me instead?"

"Ah, well," Kotoko's eyes slanted to Emi, who nodded vigorously and gave her the double thumbs-up signal. "I-I don't even know your name!" she burst out.

He laughed. "Easily taken care of." He took one of the photographs that Emi held and grabbed Kotoko's autograph marker. "My name is Nakagawa Taketo and I'll be studying law, if that helps you make up your mind. Here's my name and phone number, in case you don't want to wait until next year." He winked, dropped the photo into her hand and began to walk away.

Kotoko stared at it for a moment then handed her racquet and the picture to Emi. "Can you hold onto these for me, please?" She walked after him, calling, "Wait, Taketo-kun!"

Emi suddenly found her shoulders clutched by Mrs. Irie. "Who is that young man? Why is Kotoko-chan leaving with him? Don't tell me that's another one! And this one is cute—cuter than Naoki!" She called out to Mr. Aihara, who had custody of the videocamera. "Aihara-san, don't lose track of them!"

* * *

Taketo treated Kotoko to kakigori at the Ski Club booth, unknowingly causing a small tumult when Jinko and Satomi caught sight of him. They made frantic "call me" hand signals at Kotoko after serving them.

"I understand that I have a long battle in front of me," Taketo commented as they walked the central path carrying the shaved ice. "As you've been in love with Irie-san since your first year of high school, I can't expect your feelings to turn towards me overnight."

"Oh, I've—" Kotoko tried to break in.

"But if you can start liking me, even bit by bit, I'll be really happy." He smiled and stopped her. "You have something on the corner of your mouth here." He bent close to her face and wiped it with his handkerchief.

Whether intentional or not, at that time they were standing directly in front of the combating okonomi-yaki stands. When Naoki heard a yowl from Kinnosuke, he let his eyes follow the despairing chef's gaze. He limited his own personal reaction to a clenched jaw and eyebrows sharply drawn together, but upon noticing the neighboring grill had been once again left unattended, he let out a curse.

"Damn that stalking bastard! Hijiri! Kuramochi!" he called to other team workers. "Ikezawa has left his booth for the last time! The Tennis Club is taking over his grill. Start cooking and use up his ingredients first!"


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30**

Tonan Fall Festival: Sunday, Day Three, Part Three

"Has anyone seen Matsumoto-san?" Sudo asked his fellow tennis players.

"I believe she left a few minutes ago to freshen up before the pageant," someone answered.

"Great!" Sudo smiled in anticipation as he saw her approach. He smoothed his unruly hair back and nervously wiped his palms on his slacks before walking toward her. "Are you ready, Matsu—"

She sauntered by him as if he was invisible. "Irie-kun, put down that spatula and escort me to the pageant," she demanded with a smile. Naoki scowled at her yet still threw off his apron and complied. He had his own reasons for attending, and he figured he could endure Matsumoto's presence until then.

* * *

"Kotoko-chan! Why didn't you tell me you were a contestant for Miss Tonan?" Mrs. Irie was flitting around taking pictures and generally getting in the way of Jinko and Satomi, who were trying to style Kotoko's hair and reapply her makeup.

"I didn't really think I would be a finalist," Kotoko began.

"Be still!" Satomi commanded as she waved the mascara wand. "Is your new guy going to escort you?"

"Yeah!" chimed in Jinko. "He's a real hunk!"

"No, no! He's too strong of a competitor," protested Mrs. Irie. "Where is Onii-chan when you need him?"

"Irie-kun is probably going to be with Matsumoto-san," Kotoko answered, keeping her eyes wide and unmoving so as not to annoy Satomi.

"That hussy!" Satomi and Jinko shook with suppressed laughter as Mrs. Irie continued to mutter invective against the tennis princess.

"Okay, we're done!" Kotoko had to stand and smile for several more shots for Mrs. Irie. However, the excitable photographer almost collapsed in shock when she viewed the Three Smashketeers in full cosplay.

"Oh, my!" she gasped with a hand to her face. "Oh, my!"

* * *

Mr. Irie finally tore Yuuki away from the computers and steered his family and Kotoko's friends to the pageant area early in order to secure a good view (and a good angle for Mrs. Irie's camera shots).

The Anime Club members congregated together after the others left to take care of last-minute primping. Kotoko straightened their costumes and smoothed their hair before giving them the go-ahead. She raised her eyebrows when Yoshida and Nishimura removed the weights from the photo backdrop and began carrying it along.

"Just in case you win, Kotori-nee," Nishimura grinned.

She rolled her eyes. "If you're that certain, then don't forget the stool!" Kato quickly picked it up, and Kotoko sighed and headed up the procession. As they walked, she felt the familiar tingle on the back of her neck. "Don't be silly!" she charged herself. "I'm in the Kotorin getup, leading a cosplay crew hauling a large painted starscape. Of course people are staring at me!"

Just then she became aware of a muted conversation among the Anime Club members. Her night vision might be poor, but her hearing was not.

"Irie-san texted me that the crazy fool has been missing for two hours."

"Part of the afternoon he was hovering in those bushes across from our exhibit. Luckily Kotori-nee was never by herself."

"We need to guard her closely at the pageant. He might try something there."

Kotoko turned and stopped dead, arms akimbo. "What. Are. You. Talking. About."

A few minutes later she was ready to chew iron and spit out nails. "Irie-kun thought that I was in danger from Kin-chan? Kin-chan!? Of all people?! And Jinko and Satomi were also in on this? I'm not the one who's the baka in the Irie house! Just wait until I get my hands on him!"

The collective group trembled as she stomped off. Just before they regained control of their limbs to follow her, Tanaka said, "I would hate to be in his shoes right now."

" _I'm_ glad we left the racquet behind," added Nishimura.

* * *

"It looks like you've calmed down a little, I hope?" Kato asked a few minutes after Kotoko's lively discussion with Jinko and Satomi ended.

Kotoko let out a breath. "Just a tad. Satomi and Jinko say that they never believed it and just played along with Irie-kun, but they should have told me! All those times you never let me be by myself, you thought I was in danger?" Her eyes were bright as she looked up at him.

"Uh, we thought there was a possibility. We couldn't let anything happen to our Onee-chan," he explained, placing his hands on her shoulders.

"I suppose I'll forgive you," she said as she leaned towards him to place her head on his chest.

"What is that girl doing?" Mrs. Irie exclaimed as she focused the zoom lens. "Kotoko-chan, if you don't want my son, at least choose the cute guy!"


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31**

Tonan Fall Festival: Sunday, Day Three, Part Four

The announcer was wound up and in full emcee mode. "And representing the Tennis Club, our first finalist is Matsumoto Yuko, escorted by Irie Naoki!" Led by Sudo, the Tennis Club spelled out her name in a rousing cheer. As soon as he deposited her on the stage, Naoki descended and strode off behind the platform. His complete departure was foiled by an interstellar fireball.

"How in the world did you think that Kin-chan would ever do me harm? What were you thinking? Oh, you weren't, were you?" Kotoko spat.

"Who told you—"

"Well, he may be an idiot but he doesn't have a heart of ice like you."

"Wha-? Heart of ice? How melodramatic are you?!" Naoki loomed over her. "I was protecting you!"

"Don't make me laugh!"

"Get real! He was constantly hanging all over you in high school—"

"Always in a group!"

"He and his boneheaded posse followed you home one day—"

"Satomi was with me most of the way!"

"He's constantly posting signs and pictures of you in the cafeteria for everyone to see—"

"Your mother has put up her share of those!"

"Plus, you said yourself that you were hiding from him in English class!"

"That was just so he wouldn't nag me about dating him! Aargh!" She grabbed her hair in frustration.

"Don't lie. There _had_ to be more than that." He gestured with his arm. "Why else would you create an elaborate list of ways to avoid him?"

Kotoko stared at him, hands frozen in position on either side of her head. "What are you talking about?"

"'Number 1: Leave early and arrive at campus before him. Number 2: Sit in the back of the classroom in English Comprehension. Number 3: Eat bento lunch instead of cafeteria. Number 4: Take a leave of absence from the Tennis Club.'"

"What?!" she sputtered. "That list—you—" She paused to take a deep breath. "That was in my room! On my desk! Why were you reading it? Again, in my _bedroom_! Don't you understand what privacy is?"

"Privacy has no meaning if you are in danger." He bent further down until they were almost nose-to-nose.

"You say that as if I mean something to you," Kotoko retorted, wiping away an angry tear. "Well, you've crossed the line now! I told you that I'm going to forget you, and I'm really going to do it this time."

"We've been in this situation before." Naoki grabbed her shoulders.

"-oko. Aihara Kotoko!"

"Kotori-nee! It's time to go on stage!" The Three Smashketeers's heads appeared around the corner as if on a totem pole: Kato on top, with Tanaka and Aoki below.

"Right!" Kotoko broke away.

"This discussion is not over!" Naoki called after her.

She waved her hand back. "Whatever!"

* * *

Three days of posing for photographs stood Kotoko in good stead as she smiled at the audience with the other contestants. Mrs. Irie was pushing for position as if she was employed by Gossip Magazine while her father made slow pans of the stage. Yuuki looked disgusted at the proceedings, and Mr. Irie could be seen tugging his shirt's neckline with a finger. Her Tennis Club friends called her name in spite of the Sudo-led support of Matsumoto. Unfortunately for them, he was carrying a racquet when he went to scold them for disloyalty. Kotoko grinned widely and waved when she spotted Taketo near the front of the audience, and he responded by blowing her an over-the-top kiss. She was still laughing at it when Matsumoto leaned toward her.

"Unbelievable!" she sniffed. "I never imagined _you_ being chosen."

"Me either," Kotoko responded. "But here we are."

"I'm letting you know that I will select Irie-kun as Mr. Tonan when I win." She indicated Naoki, now standing below on their left, arms folded and with a sour expression on his face while his mother talked in his ear.

"You're welcome to him!"

"What?!"

"—time to reveal the final tally! According to the male voters, this year's Queen of the Tonan University Festival is—Drum roll, please!—Japanese Literature Department first-year student, Aihara Kotoko, better known as 'Kotorin'!"

The emcee walked Kotoko to the front of the stage as the runners-up were escorted off. Kotoko noticed the Anime Club forging a path as they struggled to bring the backdrop behind her. Her father followed their progress with the video camera, as apparently Mrs. Irie was not going to let any moment escape unrecorded.

"It looks like you locked in the otaku vote," commented the emcee. "How do you feel right now? About ready to take flight?" he asked, eyeing the gently swaying starfield that now towered behind them.

"Um—um—I'm very happy," Kotoko replied. "Excuse me." She bowed to the crowd as she turned and was assisted onto the stool by Kato to audience applause. He and the other members then moved to the back of the stage, awaiting the next portion of the pageant.

"Now that we've named our queen, it's time for the traditional naming of her king. For the benefit of those in attendance who may be unaware, the festival queen gets to name one man she likes to be her king. And the chosen man _cannot_ refuse the honor. Now, who will it be?"

Kotoko took the microphone from him and looked over the audience. She smiled at Taketo, who was grinning and waving at her hopefully. Suddenly there was a ruckus in the crowd behind him and he was knocked aside. As she stared in disbelief, Kinnosuke burst to the front and slammed into the stage.

"Me! Pick me, Kotoko! Me!" he shouted, both arms and one leg on the stage floor, as if he was going to climb up without stairs.

The impact of his body caused the platform to tremble, and the ensuing melee as Taketo and members of the Tennis Club wrestled him away caused Kotoko to lose her balance on the wobbling stool.

"Eek!" she screamed as she felt herself fall forward in slow motion.

In a move too rapid for Mr. Aihara's camera to follow, Naoki took a running leap and vaulted onto the stage, grabbing Kotoko in mid-air. They flew together and landed against the backdrop. Already unsteady due to its light construction, the framework fell over. The fabric pulled free of the frame and enveloped the two on the floor as if they were the filling in a wonton.


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32**

Tonan Fall Festival: Sunday, Day Three, Part Five

"Will you let go of me?" Kotoko snapped.

"I saved your life, baka! _Now_ will you admit that he is dangerous?"

"It was an accident! As for saving my life, I've fallen farther off the uneven parallel bars."

"You—in gymnastics? That I'd love to have seen!"

"Overbearing bully! I'll show you a dismount!"

"Watch how you move that leg, Kotoko!"

While the astounded audience watched, the sheet's ends fluttered as its occupants struggled on stage. Every time the emcee or an Anime Club member neared them in an attempt to unwind the imprisoning cloth, the couple would roll away. The microphone, tangled in the folds with them, continued to broadcast their conversation, which rapidly devolved into a continuation of their previous argument.

"It's just you, the perfect Irie Naoki, who always has to have the last word. Well, I'm sick and tired…"

"Ouch! Are you deliberately trying to injure me?" he howled.

"…of you interfering with my life!"

"Like I told you, I was…"

"I know—'protecting me'!"

"Tell me!" The fabric stilled. "Were you going to pick him as King?"

"Who?"

"Ikezawa—Kinnosuke!"

"Kin-chan?" There was a pause. "Well, why not? After all, he loved me all through high school."

With another sudden kick the encased couple again rolled away from their would-be rescuers.

"That's it? You'll go out with any man who tells you he loves you?"

"So what?! I'm tired after all these years of chasing after a love that _never_ bloomed!" Once more the cylinder of cloth reversed direction and almost toppled its followers. "Well, it's over!"

"I'm the one you love!"

Everyone winced and held their ears as the loudspeakers protested the volume of that statement. Mrs. Irie clambered onto the stage and pulled away the ones trying to untangle them. "Stop! This is getting interesting!" she cried.

"You'll never be able to love anyone but me," Naoki continued.

After a pause, Kotoko replied. "What the-Where do you get all that confidence?! Fine—It's true! It's true!" Audibly sniffling, she proceeded, "But what can I do?! You don't love me, Irie-kun! You don't—"

Both conversation and movement ceased from the roll of fabric on the platform. Kinnosuke howled and collapsed in the arms of those restraining him. Taketo muttered, "Darn! Too late!"

"Don't ever say you love another man besides me," Naoki said softly. Or so he thought, for his mother began dancing in joy as the statement was broadcast to all. She waved over the helpers and they were finally able to free the pair. Everything was recorded and immortalized in true Irie Noriko fashion.

As the liberated microphone rolled across the stage, the emcee picked it up and announced dramatically, "I do believe that we have our King of the Tonan Fall Festival!"

Yuuki's hands covered his eyes. "I had a sneaking suspicion this was going to happen!" Meanwhile, his father was hugging Mr. Aihara, who struggled to keep the camera steady as tears fell down his face. Matsumoto stomped away in disgust with Sudo trailing after her, calling, "I can be _your_ king!" Taketo left the quivering bundle that was Kinnosuke and rose to aim a congratulatory salute at the bedraggled couple who had finally been assisted to their feet.

As they stood in front of the cheering audience, with the smiling Three Smashketeers behind them, Kotoko leaned over.

"That was our second kiss," she whispered to Naoki.

He smiled down at her. "You mean the third."

"Huh?"

He winked as he kissed the glove covering the finger that she had burned. "You don't have to count anymore," he said, hugging her.

"Um, Irie-kun, your mother and my father are still taking pictures."

"Let them," he grinned. "And do you think you could call me by my name now that we're an official couple?"

* * *

Some time later Kato, Tanaka and Aoki broke through the crowd of well-wishers and approached them. "Congratulations," said Aoki. "With your win, there has been a demand for one last showing of 'Legend of the Racquet Warrior', so we're heading back."

"We'll see you later this week, Kotori-nee, Irie-san."

"Thanks for all your help," Kotoko began.

"No, that's our line," Kato smiled.

"Oh, wait, I practiced something just for you!" Kotoko held out her hand, palm facing them. "Longevity and prosperity!"

Naoki sighed and rearranged her fingers. "Kotoko, if you don't do it correctly, the Vulcans won't understand. And it's 'Live long and prosper'."

The final showing of "Legend of the Racquet Warrior" was a little late in starting, due to the Anime Club's excited discussion about a possible closet Trekker at Tonan.

* * *

A/N: So that's it! This is the end of my story that was inspired by the question: What could possibly induce Kotoko to try on that Kotorin costume? I never imagined that it would take this many words to answer it.

Thanks for all your reviews and comments. They really brightened my days! I hope all my pop culture references didn't overpower the story, as I had a great deal of fun turning the Anime Club members into full-spectrum nerds. For those of you who wondered at the fast update rate, I began writing the story about six weeks before actually posting. Since it was my first time, I wanted to make sure that I had enough "foundation"in the beginning for later events to build on. This became especially important once the characters started deciding what was going to happen instead of the author. Then my almost week-long stay at a location with poor-to-no Internet provided lots of time for writing without online distractions. I came back only needing to proofread and polish, which was no small task as every chapter was read and revised at least twenty times (or so it seemed) before uploading!

Here is a glimpse of the future of this story's characters. With the acquisition and development of the Racquet Warrior video game, Pandai does not go into economic straits and thus Sahoko never comes into the picture. Without the financial stress, Mr. Irie's heart condition remains manageable and he only has to endure diet restrictions and exercise. Yuuki's illness and Naoki's decision to go into medicine still occur, but despite the doctor-nurse byplay in chapter 23, Kotoko does not become a nurse, thus saving many patients from puncture wounds. She decides that she likes what she has been doing with the Anime guys and becomes a free-lancer with her own business. The only time that she might work near Naoki is when accident victims and cancer survivors request complimentary makeovers from her. She remains good friends with her Anime guys, although much of what they talk about still goes over her head. She is especially fond of Kato, and Tanaka helps her with business management occasionally. Mrs. Irie's dream comes true, although whether she manages to push the kids into an early marriage is as yet undetermined. There's still that issue with closet space. As for poor Kin-chan, he's just going to have to wait that much longer for Chris to arrive in Japan!

Oh, and Naoki isn't really a closet Trekker. That was just his eidetic memory and his ability to understand "Kotoko-speak" coming into play.


End file.
